Crystal Palace Stadium: Parts of centre reopen following safety concerns

Crystal Palace Stadium was once host to the world's best athletes, including Usain Bolt

A sports centre which was the home of athletics in Britain for 50 years has partially reopened after it was closed last week for safety reasons.

Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, in south London, completely closed after concrete pillars that hold up floodlights were deemed unsafe.

An area which includes the 25m pool and gym have since reopened.

Entry to the facilities can be accessed via a temporary route while work to remove the floodlights continues

Other parts which have reopened include the teaching pool, fitness and cycle studios, dry dive studio, squash courts, weight-lifting gym, tennis courts, beach volleyball courts and 3G football pitches.

The stadium, which is home to the athletics track, remains closed.

But today the stadium is in a state of disrepair

A Lightopia event - a light and lantern festival - which was cancelled last weekend after an assessment found the pillars were unsafe, will open at Crystal Palace Park on Saturday and Sunday with an adjusted route.

A spokesperson for the Greater London Authority (GLA), which is in charge of the centre, said: "The GLA apologises for the disruption that the site closure has caused.

"We are completely committed to the renovation of the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre and look forward to announcing a construction schedule in the early months of 2023."

Speaking at a Budget and Performance Committee meeting held on Tuesday, Tim Steer, executive director for housing at GLA, said it was working hard to get the pillars taken down as soon as possible.

The comments follow criticisms by those that use the centre that it had been allowed to get into a state of disrepair.

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