Funded by the Department for the Economy, this regional centre of sporting excellence will be used by everyone from elite athletes and local clubs to students and staff. As well as becoming a health and wellbeing centre for the local community, it will host training camps for professional teams, such as the Super Cup NI teams, and major competitions including the Irish Netball Intervarsities.
Ulster University’s new modern complex boasts eight multi-sport indoor courts; a fitness studio for daily classes; sauna and steam room; a fitness suite with a wide range of cardio and resistance training equipment and a dedicated strength and conditioning suite.
The new complex was officially opened by Ulster University Chancellor and Coleraine native, Dr James Nesbitt. As part of the event, students, local schoolchildren and community teams took part in a sporting showcase to highlight the diverse range of clubs and societies who are already benefiting from this first-class sporting space.
Ulster University Chancellor, Dr James Nesbitt, said:
“Ulster University has a proud tradition of sport at its Coleraine campus. It is the training base for Coleraine Football Club and its successful Academy, and every Saturday we host hundreds of young footballers as part of the Harry Gregg Foundation, which I was proud to launch a couple of years back.
“The new £5.1 million sports complex is a significant investment in the Coleraine campus. The development further strengthens the University’s commitment to creating thriving sporting communities at grassroots, amateur and professional levels.
“This complex is so much more than a gym; it is home to some of Ulster University’s leading researchers in sports and exercise science who are helping to inform government policy and transform the health and wellbeing of societies, both locally and internationally. It will also provide an unrivalled practical learning environment for students studying at the Coleraine campus.”
The state-of-the-art complex builds on Ulster University’s offering as a regional centre of sporting excellence. Taking advantage of its unique location on the River Bann, close to the Irish coast and a stones throw away from one of the best golf courses in the world, the new complex will help to enhance access to and participation in a wide range of sports, including everything from golf and rowing to Gaelic football and surfing.