Winnipeg’s Sport for Life Centre officially unveiled its expansion project Tuesday with the grand opening of its Qualico Training facility.
Seven years after the centre came to the Exchange District, the expansion arrives just three weeks before the Canada Summer Games — and to Team Manitoba athletes, it’s right on time.
“You go to the U.S. and you have all these top facilities and all these girls are getting
the opportunity,” said softball player, Mary Martin. “Finally here we get our own opportunity.”
READ MORE: Canada Games Sport for Life Centre almost done
At 124,000 square feet, the 23 million dollar Qualico Training Centre is the biggest single training facility for amateur athletes in the province. It comes in four levels: a gymnasium, fitness centre, and high performance centre boasting brand new workout equipment, high-tech cardiovascular machines, and a complete track that is a massive improvement from the hallways some of the Summer Games athletes are used to running through.
“Here we have such better equipment and there’s so much more space to do so many more things,” said Martin. “It’s great.”
Tuesday’s ceremonies were headlined by premier Brian Pallister and mayor Brian Bowman, the latter already pledging his membership to the centre.
And while it may be the only legacy building of this month’s Canada Summer Games, the facility isn’t just limited to elite athletes: any one can sign up for a yearly membership to use the equipment and fitness rooms.