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INDUSTRY NEWS
Olympia welcomes second
branded health club
Ark Leisure Management has opened its second 37°-branded health
club in London Kensington’s Olympia with a 2,500sq m centre over six
floors of a Grade II-listed former warehouse site.
The club’s crèche is located in the basement, while the ground floor
houses a reception room, juice bar, sauna and swimming pool.
Changing rooms and shower areas, along with a unisex steamroom,
are situated on the first floor while the entire second floor has been
dedicated to the large gym area. Group class rooms are housed on
the third floor alongside a dedicated spinning studio, a golf simulator
and office space for club management.
The club, which has been financed by Close Venture Management,
was designed by London-based SHH architects.
Key Olympic sports
New EIS director
role prior to the Beijing Olympics
need more funding
later this year.
Former Irish Rugby Union Elite Rugby Director of the
international Conor O’Shea has RFU, Rob Andrew, said “Conor
UK Sport’s Mission 2012 programme has claimed that key sports – been appointed the new has made a huge contribution to
including athletics, swimming and boxing – need improvement in National Director of the English the development of Elite English
terms of coaching and funding before the London Olympics. Institute of Sport. rugby talent.
A independent survey carried out by Sheffield Hallam University on O’Shea joins the EIS from “Through his work and vision
behalf of UK Sport says while nine out of 10 athletes are happy with Rugby Football Union where is the RFU National Academy has
the coaching they receive and 85% are pleased with the overall currently the RFU’s director of the become the breeding ground for
services they get from their sport – including sports science and National Academy. O’Shea will future senior England players we
medicine, equipment and overseas training opportunities – there is still leave the RFU to commence the always hoped it would be.”
room for improvement.
Each sport was measured using a traffic-light system and while
around half of Olympic sports received green lights, athletics,
Cricket in a cold climate
swimming and boxing only achieved amber ratings. Kuortane Sports Resort in Finland made to a very high standard,
John Steele, Chief Executive of UK Sport, said: “The fact that athletes has a specific claim to fame. It is replicating the pace and bounce
themselves are largely happy with their current situation is good news. the most northerly venue ever of a real wicket. The ICC’s
“But Mission 2012 highlights that there is some work still to do in used for an official international decision to use them at
the system, which is a timely reminder that there is no room for cricket championship. Kuortane demonstrates they are
complacency in high-performance sport. What that demonstrates is Matches were played on Notts suitable for competitions at the
the continued need for all of us to work together to develop a Sport portable mats by the seven highest level.
performance system that ensures tomorrow’s athletes are even better competing nations – Finland, “Portable mats are also the
supported than today’s.” Denmark, Belgium, France, ideal solution for clubs and
Luxembourg, Hellas (Greece) and schools who want to continue
Sports centre funded
Portugal. Notts Sport, the world’s their cricket training and matches
leading supplier of non-turf cricket indoors throughout the winter.”
after TV appeal
pitches, has maintained its strong
commitment to European cricket
Folkestone Sports Centre has opened a children’s activity area funded by supporting the tenth ICC
during a live TV show. European Indoor Championship.
The centre was awarded £57,000 of lottery funding during the Denmark defeated Portugal in
People’s Millions show, after viewers voted for the centre’s proposals the final by two wickets off the
to get local children active. penultimate delivery, overhauling
The leisure centre, run by Folkestone Sports Centre Trust, used the Portugal’s total of 132. It is
monies to build a toboggan slope with natural waves and bumps Denmark’s fourth victory in the past
alongside its existing dry ski slope and added a ‘Bfit’, a children’s gym five championships, while the host
fitted with eight of ZigZag’s latest Xer-Dance platforms and the full nation finished a creditable third.
ZigZag Circuit of resistance and CV equipment. Shaun Patrick, Chief Executive of
Tessa Stickler, General Manager at the centre said: “We wanted to Notts Sport, says: “Once again this
encourage those children who do not take part in mainstream sports was a closely fought tournament, ABOVE: Action from the ICC
to enjoy exercise activities too. The Big Lottery ‘People’s Millions’ and we are very proud to support European Indoor
win has made all this a reality far more quickly than we had ever this popular ICC competition. Championship showing
dared to hope.” “Our portable indoor mats are France hitting a boundary.
06 UK LEISURE NEWS March / April 2008 www.ukleisurenews.co.uk
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