Olympic hero Max Whitlock MBE to open Harpenden’s new multi-million pound leisure centre
Media release from 1Life
Residents invited to join Max and other sports stars at the official launch with a Picnic in the Park
Olympic gold medal winning gymnast Max Whitlock MBE (pictured) is to officially open Harpenden’s new multi-million pound leisure centre.
And residents are invited to join him and other sports stars at the event on Friday 24 September for a celebratory Picnic in the Park.
Max, who won his third Olympic gold at the pommel horse in Tokyo this summer, was born and brought up a few miles from the centre.
He will be joined by badminton star Gail Emms MBE who won silver at the 2004 Olympic Games.
Sports clubs, school and community groups will be present at the launch at the centre in Rothamsted Park from 4pm to 6pm with residents urged to come along.
A number of family-friendly games and activities, including tennis sessions, are being arranged.
The centre was rebuilt by owners St Albans City and District Council as part of a £20 million project which includes the creation of a new culture centre named after comedy legend Eric Morecambe.
Managed by contractor 1Life, the leisure centre opened for business in April and has built up a growing membership of almost 4,000 and more than 1500 local children on the Swim School swimming lesson programme.
Councillor Anthony Rowlands, Chair of the Council’s Public Realm Committee, said:
I am thrilled that Max has agreed to come along and open the new leisure centre that we are proud to have delivered.
He is one of our greatest ever Olympians, with six medals to his name, and his presence at the opening will be inspirational to leisure centre users of all ages and abilities.
The new centre is a great asset for the town and surrounding villages as it boasts not only a 25-metre swimming pool but also a learner pool, three exercise studios, sports hall and an 80-station gym.
Max will be joined by other sports stars, including Gail Emms, and I am sure many centre users and residents will accept our invitation to come along, have a picnic and join in the fun. It should be a great celebration.
Max and Gail will assist Councillor Edgar Hill, Mayor of St Albans City and District, with the official ribbon-cutting.
A number of other civic figures including the Mayor of Harpenden, Councillor Paul Cousin, have been invited.
Mark Braithwaite, 1Life Managing Director, said:
Following the further relaxation of restrictions in recent months, we’re delighted to welcome our valued members of the public to celebrate the opening of Harpenden Leisure Centre with us over a fun-filled, family picnic.
We have a great local community around here and we’d love to see as many people down at the centre as possible. We have a wide range of activities, facilities and classes for people to enjoy and we can’t wait to get more people involved.
The exciting new facility offers the local community 40 group exercise classes per week along with other activities. More details are available on the centre’s website: https://www.1life.co.uk/Harpenden-Leisure-centre/.
The Eric Morecambe Centre (EMC), which is also managed by 1Life - is due to be officially opened on Saturday 16 October. More details about that event will be revealed at a later date.
Notes to Editors
About 1Life
1Life is a forward thinking lifestyle and management solutions company that engages with people in local communities to enhance lives through health and wellbeing, physical activity, learning and the arts.
Managing over 30 Local Authority venues nationwide covering leisure centres, swimming pools, golf courses, and theatres, we service around 10 million customer visits per year.
Employing over 1500 qualified staff, we inspire and encourage everyone to get the most out of their 1Life.
Our approach is collaborative, thoughtful and focused on creating tailored solutions to help our Local Authority clients achieve local outcomes and deliver results at a local level.
For more information, please contact Becca at AIM Content Marketing on 07342 075843 or email: becca@aimcontentmarketing.co.uk.