Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh officially reopens

One of the venues for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014 has been officially reopened - in Edinburgh.

The Royal Commonwealth Pool (RCP) will host the Games' diving competition.

It will reopen to the public on Wednesday, following a two-year £37m refurbishment.

Its 50m pool has been upgraded and there is a new 25m diving pool with a moveable floor, as well as a teaching pool, large gym and new reception, cafe and changing rooms.

The pool, which was opened in January 1970 by Princess Anne and hosted two Commonwealth Games, closed for the work in June 2009.

Former Olympic swimming champion David Wilkie officially reopened it at a special ceremony earlier, which featured aquatics displays by several well-known athletes.

Mr Wilkie then joined some competition winners to be the first to swim in the newly-refurbished pool.

The British swimming squad has also selected the pool as the venue for its final training camp in July 2012 ahead of the London Olympics.

Mr Wilkie said: "It is a great privilege to be back at the Royal Commonwealth Pool, considering that this is where I did a lot of my training when I was a schoolboy in Edinburgh.

The Royal Commonwealth Pool reopens to the public on Wednesday at 10:00

"This is also the pool where I won my first international cap for Great Britain and won my first major international medal at the 1970 Commonwealth Games.

"I have some fond memories of the place. It's great to see the 'old lady' reformed in all her old glory and to play a part in her reopening."

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: "With five Scots swimmers already qualifying for the London Olympics and the 2014 Games less than 900 days away, there has never been a more exciting time for sport in Scotland.

"The reopening of this spectacular venue, which will host the diving competition during the 2014 Commonwealth Games, marks yet another significant milestone on the journey towards 2014."

Deputy Lord Provost Rob Munn said: "The RCP's refurbishment has been an incredibly complex engineering project.

"In just four months' time, the pool will play host to the British Swimming squad as they make their final training preparations ahead of London 2012 Olympic Games."