Triathlete and Paralympic gold medalist Andy Lewis has officially opened Bristol's redeveloped Bradley Stoke Leisure Centre following a £3.6m (US$4.5m, €4.2m) makeover.
Funded by South Gloucestershire Council, the cash has been spent on a soft play zone, climbing wall, gym, café and exercise studios. The climbing wall, which opened two months ago, has received 4,000 visits.
Alongside the leisure centre facilities, which were redeveloped by Createability, the site has improved library accessibility and extended opening hours through a swipe card access system. This will be up and running in February.
Lewis, who trained at the centre before winning gold at the Rio Games last year, said: “This is a fantastic centre. The support from the leisure centre has been awesome from start to finish and I couldn’t have achieved the gold without them. The new facilities look amazing.”
Mark Crutchley, chief executive of Circadian Trust, which manages and operates the centre on behalf of the council, said: “This has been a major project that has taken us almost a year to complete. We have kept to our original schedules and so I would like to thank our customers who have been patient throughout the process.
"I think everyone will agree that the results have been worth it and demonstrates our commitment to investing in our centres for the community and the future.”
South Gloucestershire and Circadian will now be working on Longwell Green Active Lifestyle Centre, also in Bristol, where £1.5m (US$1.9m, €1.7m) will be spent on a new fitness studio, an additional 25 stations in the fitness suite, a new lobby and more poolside showers.
