Moray Sports Centre offers golden opportunities – Olympian
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A LOSSIEMOUTH-RAISED Olympian said the new £12 million Moray Sports Centre offered a springboard for aspiring athletes at its official opening last week.
Local politicians and councillors, businessmen and women, NHS representatives, charities and schoolchildren from throughout Moray gathered to see double Olympic champion rower Heather Stanning MBE cut the ribbon on Friday, August 30.
Moray SNP MSP Richard Lochhead said the "breathtakingly beautiful" new centre – the first sports centre build in the area for 40 years – was the "pride of Moray".
Heather wrote her name into the history books at both the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic Games with golden performances alongside Helen Glover in the women's pair – the first British female rowers to win an Olympic title.
An Army Major with the 32nd Regiment Royal Artillery, Heather grew up in Lossiemouth. Her success came as no surprise to her former classmates at Gordonstoun School, who had named her as most likely "first Olympic gold winner" in her school yearbook several years earlier.
Heather told the large crowd at the Elgin centre that the "amazing" centre, with its top-notch facilities and instruction, would enable the area's sporting talent make the leap to greater success in their fields.
Heather, who took her Olympic gold medals along to the ceremony, said: "Sport means a huge amount to me.
"One thing that really stood out for me is that this really is a centre for everyone."
Heather told the assembled school pupils, who put questions to the athlete and were encouraged to take her on in a rowing challenge afterwards: "What I did in the sports field I took into the classroom – and that's how I got into university."
She encouraged the youngsters to take full advantage of the new sport possibilities on offer and advised them not to be afraid to try something new – as that's how she discovered her calling.
The charity-run Moray Sports Centre, financed by the Moray Sports Foundation, secured a £250,000 grant from sportscotland. It is heavily reliant on donations, cash backing from private funds and foundations, corporate sponsorship and the public through fundraising and legacy gifts.
It offers a multi-purpose hall which can be split in various ways catering for basketball, netball, volleyball, badminton and table tennis for starters. It has separate gyms, indoor cycling room, and numerous studios for an array of classes.
Construction began in May 2018 and fundraising continues for future plans, with covered tennis courts the next vision.
It employs 40 people, but hopes to create up to 100 jobs as expansion unfolds.
Mr Lochhead thanked all the donors and said the centre offers a huge improvement in quality of life for people in the area, describing it as a "game-changer".
He added: "The state-of-the-art facilities at Moray Sports Centre are completely transformational and a real game-changer for leisure facilities locally.
"It really is a big boost for Moray’s sports clubs and people in our communities to have these first-class facilities on our doorstep."
He said Sandy Adam, chairman of the trustees and Springfield Properties chairman, and the team at the sport centre deserved praise for turning a dream into a reality.
Mr Adam said: "We first started this process about four and a half years ago when we decided 'right, Elgin and Moray need a sport centre so let's get one built'.
"Jane (Innes) and I worked away ourselves behind the scenes for about six months then we held a public meeting in the college round about summer 2015 and we had an overwhelming and positive response from about 300 people who came along. That gave us the confidence to continue on our journey – the culmination of which you see here today.
"For me, it's a way of giving something back to the community where I've lived and worked for over 40 years."
Trustee secretary Jane Innes said: "The thing that makes me passionate about this is the fact that Moray didn't have a dedicated sports centre – which was an inequity for people who live here – so young people couldn't advance in their sport without travelling to the central belt and obviously that really limits the people who can do it.
"It's really been a privilege to be involved in this because I absolutely believe it's a huge positive asset for the community."
Chief executive Kathryn Evans said: "It took four years of persistence and a lot of hard work from trustees to get the centre up and running."
Moray Conservative councillor Tim Eagle said: "Having a new facility like this is amazing because it offers a different dynamic. The sports hall is much bigger, it's got seating, it has the potential to host national events which I think is really important for us.
"I was talking to our sports development manager about the partnership we can have between Moray Council and here – so we're not working against each other, we're genuinely working together to develop sports in Moray."
Garry Reid, lead manager for sportscotland, said: "We want everyone to take part in sport at the level they choose and facilities like Moray Sport Centre have a key role to play in making sport accessible by providing more and better opportunities to participate.
"I am sure the centre will be a huge asset to the local area for many years to come."
