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John Charles Centre to open aquatic extension this month
The new aquatic centre at the John Charles Centre for Sport in Leeds will open to the public on 29 October.
The £16.5m publicly funded project has taken more than two years to complete and will include a 50m swimming pool, diving centre, aerobics studio and multi-use exercise rooms.
Two submersible booms and a floating floor will enable the main pool to be divided into three separate pools of different sizes and depths.
The pools will also be able to host national competitions, with seating for 650 overlooking the main pool and 150 overlooking the diving pool.
The 17m long and 15.5m-wide diving pool boasts a full range of boards up to 10 meters and has been fitted with multiple cameras to allow analysis of performances, making it available for Olympic-standard training.
John Procter, board member for leisure at Leeds City Council, said: “The council is proud to have such a complete aquatics centre to give to the public.
“Leeds’ reputation for swimming is outstanding and this will hopefully help us to discover more Olympians to follow in the footsteps of Adrian Moorhouse and James Hickman, while providing a pool for the public to benefit from as well.”
The council expects the pool to attract around 300,000 users each year, which would increase the overall number of visits to the John Charles Centre to 800,000 a year.
Funding for the pool came from a £5m Sports Lottery award and from the sale of the Leeds International Pool site.