Team Wales to be based at Wolverhampton University's Walsall campus for 2022 Commonwealth Games
Team Wales will make their home in the Black Country for the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, it has been announced.
Coaches and support staff will be based at Wolverhampton University's Walsall campus for the Games in July and August 2022.
Professor Geoff Layer, University of Wolverhampton's vice-chancellor, said: "We are delighted to be hosting Team Wales for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. This news builds on the recent hugely successful Commonwealth Judo Championships which we hosted in September and really put Walsall on the sporting map.
“Sport is a key priority for the University and we are continuing to invest in cutting edge new technology to develop our offer for elite sports teams and further expand the learning experience for our students.
"Our staff and students are really looking forward to increasing our work with elite athletes, coaches and support staff through the partnership and we wish Team Wales every success in the build-up to 2022.”
Through the partnership, there will be opportunities for athletes to use the university's state-of-the-art sports facilities through training camps in the run up to the Commonwealth Games, giving staff and students further experience of working with elite sports people.
There are also plans for guest lectures, question and answer sessions and visits by students to Team Wales' sports facilities.
Chris Jenkins, chief executive officer of Team Wales, said: "This is an exciting opportunity for us to have this partnership supporting our athletes and staff going into Birmingham 2022 and also working with the students of the university, giving hands-on experience of a major games.”
Team Wales will occupy around 50 halls of residence rooms at the Walsall campus for the duration of the Commonwealth Games.
Wolverhampton University has recently invested an initial £1 million in revamping the sports and research facilities at its Walsall campus – including new hi-tech equipment such as 3D motion capture technology, which was tested out by England Test cricket
captain Joe Root during a recent visit to the University, and an environmental chamber to replicate nearly any climate on the planet.
