Keys officially handed over for new Sandwell Aquatics Centre

Sandwell Council officially handed the keys to the Sandwell Aquatics Centre over to Birmingham 2022 on Monday, with the Mayor of Sandwell, Councillor Richard Jones, presenting the keys to venue general manager Joanna Rolfe.

Built on time and within budget, the council said it hopes the new facility will put Sandwell on the map during the Commonwealth Games and also become an outstanding new leisure centre for the community.

The Sandwell Aquatics Centre is the only brand new, purpose-built facility for Birmingham 2022 and will be one of the busiest at the Games, with 11 days of swimming, Para-swimming and diving from Friday, July 29, until Monday, August 8, and more than 60 medal events.

The council said it also aims to be one of the greatest legacies of Birmingham 2022, with local people and young, talented swimmers and divers benefitting from having a world-class facility on their doorstep.

The facility will be handed back to the council for public use from 2023 following a 10 month legacy construction phase after the Games are over, to establish more local leisure facilities for residents.

Sandwell Council leader Kerrie Carmichael, said: “This is a day to celebrate Sandwell. This is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our construction partners, who worked diligently throughout the project and a global pandemic to complete this venue on time and on budget.

“The world’s eyes will be on Sandwell so I can’t wait to welcome talented athletes from across the Commonwealth and see what they can achieve in this fantastic new facility.

“The legacy the Games will leave us is not simply this state-of-the-art facility for local residents, but also hopefully the inspiration not just for the next generation of athletes, but perhaps all of us to be more physically active.”

Joanna Rolfe, Birmingham 2022’s venue general manager said: “The Sandwell Aquatics Centre is a fantastic facility, and we are delighted that it is part of our venue portfolio for the Commonwealth Games.

"Tickets for the aquatics events have been hugely popular and so we are expecting full crowds in this venue which means the swimmers, para swimmers and divers will experience an amazing atmosphere during the competition.

"We would like to thank Sandwell Council and their construction partners for all their hard work and support to ensure that this venue was finished on schedule and we now can’t wait for the Games to begin.”