The new Michael Woods Sports & Leisure Centre in Glenrothes has been officially opened/

The council-funded facility is now the second of three to be opened as part of the Future of Leisure programme, which, once complete, will have seen the local authority invest £55m in new centres.

The centres are located in Dunfermline, Glenrothes and Kirkcaldy.

The Glenrothes project was awarded a grant of £1.5m from sportscotland's Sports Facilities Fund towards the construction of the facility.

The centre boasts a 25m x 17m 8 lane competition swimming pool, with a spectating gallery for 250 people, a 20m x 10m training pool with underwater movable floor, an 11m x 5m teaching/remedial pool and a modern wetside change area with adjoining health suite. Dryside facilities include a gym with 80 stations, strength and conditioning studio, purpose built aerobics studio, regional standard eight-badminton court sports hall and two squash courts.

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The outdoor facilities on offer include an 11-a-side synthetic pitch, three five-a-side 3G synthetic pitches, a seven-a-side 3G synthetic pitch and an athletics track upgrade.

Speaking at the opening, Leader of Fife Council, Councillor Alex Rowley said: "I hope that the local community and people from further afield will be attracted to this fantastic centre and the range of opportunities it offers.

"I think it's especially important our young people are given the chance to develop an interest in sport and leisure early on which we hope will stay with them for the rest of their lives and this facility is a great place to start a passion for sport.

"By investing in this type of high quality centre the council is giving people of all ages the best possible incentive to get fit and active as well as offering a regional facility for our local groups and athletes to further develop and hone their sporting talents."

(JP/CD)