Kier Western has filled south Bristol's new Olympic-size swimming pool with water for the first time.

The pool at the new £22m Hengrove Leisure Centre, which is set to open in February next year, was filled with 640,000 gallons of water to test its water tightness. The last drops of water were poured into the 50m pool by dignitaries, including Lord Mayor Colin Smith, at a special 'topping up' ceremony.

Also at the ceremony was the city council's deputy leader Simon Cook, representatives from developer Kier Western and leisure operator Parkwood Leisure, and talented 11-year-old Bristol swimmer Daisy Stagg. The schoolgirl has just been invited to join the council's Development Swim Squad, which works with emerging young swimmers across the city to help them achieve their full potential.

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Once completed, the pool will boast ten lanes suitable for family, fitness and competition swimming. It will have two motorised booms, which will enable it to be subdivided into three sections for a mixture of fitness, learning and fun activities. Its opening is expected to help double the number of people taking up swimming in the city. The Hengrove Leisure Centre ‘healthplex’ will also offer a fitness suite with spa, sauna and relaxation zone, an all-ability climbing wall and a healthy living zone with a café and crèche.

Mr Cook commented: "The pool looks fantastic and when open will be central to Bristol's significantly improved swimming offering. It will be a flexible enough to encourage those new to swimming to swim more regularly and maintain a good level of fitness; it will also be of a high specification to attract competitive swimming and appeal to those swimmers looking to achieve national standards."

The leisure centre is part of the £100m Hengrove Park Regeneration Scheme, which includes the new South Bristol Community Hospital and the City of Bristol College's South Bristol Skills Academy.

Work started on the former airfield site last summer under a private finance initiative.

(CD)