During their Foundation Weekend, Kingswood College officially opened their brand new multi-million rand High Performance Centre, after a year and a half of construction.
During their Foundation Weekend, Kingswood College officially opened their brand new multi-million rand High Performance Centre, after a year and a half of construction.
The centre, situated on the City Lords field, was opened on the morning of Saturday 17 March and hosted a number of activities and demonstrations including netball, basketball and cricket games as well as aerobics and consultations with a biokeneticist.
The official opening ceremony, attended by many parents, staff, visitors and pupils, was lead by District Bishop Musi Losaba and saw him and Kingswood chaplain, Reverend Dix Sibeko give their blessings. The centre was officially opened by Buster Brotherton, however, who is the chairman of the school's estates and buildings committee and has been closely involved with the construction of the building.
“We often focus on academics and rate schools according to their results, but sport is just as important and it is a great privilege to play a role in the development of sport for these young women and men,” Brotherton said. Kingswood College principal Jon Trafford said that the school was thrilled to be able to add this facility to their campus.
“Eighteen months ago, this building that we are sitting in was just a pile of rubble. I’ve seen it being built from the ground up and I couldn’t be more proud to be standing here today,” he said. The centre's main hall has five indoor cricket nets, bowling machines and a video analysis room all accompanied by full-sized basketball, netball and indoor hockey courts. In addition to these facilities, it's also equipped with a ventilated weights room and strength and conditioning machinery.
The centre also recognises the importance of general fitness, and not just sports, so its specially designed wooden floor acts as a venue for all aerobics and routine workouts as well as an area that focuses on cardiovascular workouts.
Finally, the centre will be home to the Kingswood High Performance Cricket Programme, an initiative that will be headed by a professional cricket coach. The centre is not just designed for sports; it will also host school dances, concerts and fundraising events.
