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Leigh Indoor Sports Centre was officially
opened by Andy Burnham, Minister for Culture, Media and Sport, on Friday
(20 June) in the presence of key partners and VIP guests who made the
Leigh Sports Village dream a reality.
The Culture Minister was in his constituency to endorse the £83m Leigh
Sports Village project, of which the indoor sports centre plays a
pivotal role. Other VIP guests included Leigh Centurions legend Tommy
Sale, who at the age of 90 has dedicated many of his years to sport in
the local community which has been recognised in the naming of ‘Sale
Way’ on which the sports centre is located; local school boy Daniel
Greaves, British Schools Under 15 Champion Trampolinist; Ana Bogdan
Romanian tennis player competing at this year’s Junior Wimbledon; and
the Mayor of Wigan, Councillor Rona Winkworth.
The Leigh Sports Village project took over a decade to realise and
alongside the indoor sports centre includes a 10,000 seater stadium, 400
metre running track and club house for Leigh Harriers, new pavilion for
Leigh East Rugby League Club, floodlit grass and artificial pitches and
a multi use games area; together with Leigh Sixth Form College, a hotel
and offices, leisure and specialist retail facilities including a
cinema, restaurants, bars and a ten-pin bowling alley.
The £6.4m sports centre, operated and managed by Wigan Leisure and
Culture Trust, opened to the public in January this year. Its facilities
include a 25m six-lane swimming pool, sports hall for badminton, netball
and basketball and a health and fitness suite with 65 work stations,
weight resistance and cardiovascular equipment.
Guests took a tour of the facilities and were treated to a trampoline
display by Daniel Greaves and other demonstrations by local school
groups.
Speakers at the event included: Trevor Barton, Leigh Sports Village
champion; Lord Peter Smith, Leader of Wigan Council; Rodney Hill, Chief
Executive of Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust; John Dennis on behalf of
developers Greenbank Partnerships and Andy Burnham, Minister for
Culture, Media and Sport.
The official opening was followed by an free family open day on Saturday
21st, giving local residents the opportunity to sample state-of-the-art
leisure facilities and the exciting range of activities free of charge.
Council leader and Leigh councillor Lord Smith said: "This brilliant new
sports centre shows what you can achieve with vision and determination.
The council has been working closely with our MP, sporting groups and
partners in the leisure trust to put Leigh on the national sporting map
through Leigh Sports Village.
Lord smith continued: "At a time when there's never been so much concern
about fitness and physical activity we can now offer young and old some
of the finest new facilities anywhere in the country. We have long
wanted to be able to provide proper swimming facilities in Leigh and
now, thanks to the hard work of a lot of people, we are able to do just
that."
Rodney Hill, Chief Executive of Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust
commented: “To date we have had 75,000 visitors and are attracting more
and more people each week. It is also encouraging to see the home grown
sporting talent that we have in the borough which has been demonstrated
at the opening event, and we hope to inspire young people across Wigan
Borough to become champions of the future, hopefully some of which will
see participating in the 2012 Olympic Games.”
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NOTES TO EDITORS: For further information on this press release please
contact Georgina Bentley, Marketing Manager, on 01942 486930 or at
g.bentley@wlct.org
Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust: Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust is a
charitable trust working on behalf of Wigan Council to manage and
support leisure and cultural facilities, initiatives and events for over
300,000 residents in the Wigan Borough. See
www.wlct.org
Getting Wigan Active: Getting Wigan Active is Wigan Leisure and Culture
Trust’s vision to help people across the Wigan Borough to become more
physically, mentally and creatively active. It also aims to increase
community activity and to encourage good citizenship.
Leigh Sports Village:
Leigh Sports Village is the biggest investment in public sports,
recreational and educational facilities in Wigan borough for many years
and has transformed Leigh into one of the finest hubs of activity in the
North West.
The £83m project includes:
- 10,000 seat stadium
- indoor sports centre and swimming pool
- new Leigh Sixth Form College building
- 400 metre running track with a covered sprinting facility and club
house
- new pavilion for Leigh East Rugby League Club
- floodlit grass and artificial pitches and a multi use games area
- 150 bedroom 4 star hotel and offices
- leisure and specialist retail facilities including a cinema,
restaurants, bars and a ten-pin bowling alley.
Partners involved in Leigh Sports Village include:
Greenbank Partnerships Limited
- Leigh Centurions Rugby League Club
- Leigh East Amateur Rugby Football Club
- Leigh Harriers Athletics Club
- Leigh RMI Football Club
- Leigh Sports Village Company
- Leigh Sports Village Trust
- Wigan and Leigh College
- Wigan Council
- Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust
Further information: David Mather, Head of PR, Wigan Council, tel.
01942 827164
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Culture Minister Andy Burnham unveiling
the official opening plaque |