Funded by the University, in partnership with the Government, UK Sport and multiple National Governing Bodies, the developments ensure Loughborough’s facilities continue to push the boundaries of innovation and support athletes’ needs.
At the Netball Centre a high-performance training environment has been created, providing the perfect base for England Netball, the Vitality Roses, and Loughborough’s athletes. The initiative has further strengthened the University’s long-standing strategic partnership with England Netball.
In partnership with UK Athletics (UKA), UK Sport and the UK Sports Institute (UKSI), a world leading running analysis system has been installed at the High-Performance Athletics Centre (HiPAC). The system marks a major leap forward in athlete development, centred on the athlete-coach experience. Enhanced office spaces for UKA staff and transformed medical and treatment areas further underline the HiPAC as a world-class training environment.
Thanks to a £2 million Government grant the Swimming Pool, home to Olympic and Paralympic medal winners, has been fully decarbonised, reducing Scope 1 emissions by 2.4% and cutting Loughborough Sport’s carbon footprint by 13%. Support from UK Sport has also enabled further enhancements to be made to support elite performance training at the facility, and a new partnership with Speedo has been signed.
And to showcase over 100 years of sporting excellence at Loughborough, the entrance to the Sir David Wallace Sports Hall has been transformed into an inspiring celebration of the University’s rich sporting history. It highlights the many successes of its high-profile athletes, Loughborough Sport Hall of Fame members, and its continued dominance in British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) competitions.
All of this incredible transformative work was celebrated at a special launch event, attended by elite athletes, influential sport leaders, and iconic figures from across the world of sport.
Speaking at the event Dame Denise Lewis DBE, former Olympic gold medal athlete and President of UK Athletics, said: “There is a strong partnership between UK Athletics and Loughborough, so it is great to be here celebrating the opening of these enhanced facilities. In high performance, and the marginal gains you need in sport, knowing someone is investing in new technology and training environments to advance athletes and their coaches is brilliant.”
Professor Jo Maher, the University’s Pro Vice-Chancellor for Sport said: “We are proud to work collaboratively with our partners to enhance our athlete-centred facilities to drive Olympic and Paralympic performance.
“Elite sport evolves constantly through developments in technology and sport science. It is essential here at Loughborough we stay ahead. We innovate to meet world class standards, because we want to be world number one for all our partners.
“We have had amazing feedback from senior stakeholders and coaches, including the head coach for England Netball. The biggest source of pride for the project team was walking into the Netball Centre and seeing how excited the England first team was to see their new changing rooms, saying they want to train in them every week!”
Baroness Sue Campbell, Chair of the England Netball Board, added: “The team has told me how blown away and inspired they have been by the changes at the University Netball Centre. This new environment will make a huge difference to our athletes and our high-performance aspirations, we are all truly grateful.”