Letterkenny Regional Sports and Leisure Complex
Encyclopedia
Letterkenny Regional Sports and Leisure Complex is a sports complex located in Letterkenny
, County Donegal
, Ireland
. The complex is located near O'Donnell Park
and the total cost of the building of the complex was €22.7 million. An open day for the complex was held on May 18 and 19 2007 and the complex opened to the public on Monday 9 July 2007.
The sports complex caters for the following activities:
attendants who complained that they could not see the show.
Letterkenny
Letterkenny , with a population of 17,568, is the largest town in County Donegal, part of the Province of Ulster in Ireland. The town is located on the River Swilly...
, County Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. The complex is located near O'Donnell Park
O'Donnell Park
O' Donnell Park is a Gaelic Athletic Association stadium in Letterkenny, County Donegal, Ireland. It is situated on the Churchill road in the town and is home to St Eunan's GAA Club...
and the total cost of the building of the complex was €22.7 million. An open day for the complex was held on May 18 and 19 2007 and the complex opened to the public on Monday 9 July 2007.
Building of the Complex
Construction of the building began in 2002. The complex was meant to be finished construction in January 2007 but was not completed until four months later.Facilities
The Aura Management Company are operators of the new centre. The complex includes the following facilities:- 25m 6 lane swimming pool
- Gym
- 2500 seater Sports hall
- Danny McDaid athletic track
- Soccer pitch
- Children’s play area
- Skate park
The sports complex caters for the following activities:
- Indoor soccer
- Badminton
- Basketball
- Volley Ball
- Aerobics
- Athletics
- Swimming
- Gymnastics
Controversy
- The opening of the new leisure complex led to much controversy as many local councillors believed the old leisure centre located on the High Road should be closed to facilitate for the building of a new courthouse. Local residents and businessmen thought differently and staged protests against the closing of the centre. A decision was made, by local councillors, on May 14, 2007 to close the old leisure centre with the deciding vote coming from Cllr. Ciaran Brogan.
- On October 19, 2007 management of the leisure centre confirmed the pool and health suite at the facility was to close temporarily with immediate effect due to work being carried out to correct tiles around the pool, which were deemed to be to slippy. The centre re-opened on a week later.
Criticism
The seating arrangements of the theatre area was criticised by many RiverdanceRiverdance
Riverdance is a theatrical show consisting of traditional Irish stepdancing, notable for its rapid leg movements while body and arms are kept largely stationary. It originated as an interval performance during the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, a moment that is still considered a significant...
attendants who complained that they could not see the show.
May
- RiverdanceRiverdanceRiverdance is a theatrical show consisting of traditional Irish stepdancing, notable for its rapid leg movements while body and arms are kept largely stationary. It originated as an interval performance during the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, a moment that is still considered a significant...
performed in the Sports Complex on May 24 and 25 2007, and marked the official opening of the centre. Around 12,000 people attended. Due to the success of these performances Riverdance is to return to the complex, for five shows from Thursday 22nd through to Sunday 25 May 2008.
July
- Daniel O'DonnellDaniel O'Donnell (Irish singer)Daniel Francis Noel O'Donnell is an Irish singer, television presenter and philanthropist. O'Donnell came to public attention in 1983 and has since become a household name in Ireland and the UK. He has also had considerable success in the US. He is known for his close relationship with his...
kicked off his Irish summer tour with a show at the Complex on July 14, 2007. He was be joined by his touring partner Mary DuffMary DuffMary Duff is an Irish singer. She is best known as Daniel O'Donnell's singing partner.-Personal life:Duff is married to her manager Paul McKenna...
. The concert was filmed as a Daniel television special and also his forthcoming DVDDVDA DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
December
- RTERTERTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
's Tubridy TonightTubridy TonightTubridy Tonight is an Irish chat show hosted by Ryan Tubridy that aired for five series on RTÉ One between 2004 and 2009. The programme featured guest interviews , audience participation and live music from both a guest music group and the house band...
broadcast from the complex on December 15, 2007 for his annual Christmas show. Tickets for the show were on huge demand. Tubridy said of his travel North-West, “It’s been years since I’ve been in DonegalCounty DonegalCounty Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
for RTÉ and I’m really looking forward to going back.” Guests on the show were supermodel Janice DickinsonJanice DickinsonJanice Doreen Dickinson is an American actress, author, fashion photographer, model and talent agent.Initially notable as a model, she has described herself as the first supermodel. One of the most successful models throughout the 1970s and 1980s, she expanded her profession to reality television...
, DerryDerryDerry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
boxer John DuddyJohn DuddyJohn Francis Duddy is a retired middleweight professional boxer, from Derry, Northern Ireland. Duddy fought under the moniker of "Ireland's John Duddy" or "The Derry Destroyer"....
, Italia 901990 FIFA World CupThe 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...
trio Packie BonnerPackie BonnerPatrick Joseph "Packie" Bonner is an Irish former football goalkeeper for Celtic and the Republic of Ireland, who earned 80 caps after making his debut on his 21st birthday...
, Andy TownsendAndy TownsendAndrew "Andy" David Townsend is a former professional footballer, who played in two World Cups for the Republic of Ireland and is now a television and radio pundit....
and John AldridgeJohn AldridgeJohn William Aldridge is a former Republic of Ireland international footballer and football manager...
and The X FactorThe X Factor (UK)The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...
winner Shane Ward. Music on the night was provided by Phil CoulterPhil CoulterPhil Coulter is an artist with an international reputation as a successful songwriter, pianist, music producer, arranger and director. His success has spanned four decades and he is one of the biggest record sellers in Ireland...
, Paul BradyPaul BradyPaul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
and Eleanor McEvoyEleanor McEvoyEleanor McEvoy is one of Ireland's most accomplished contemporary singer/songwriters. McEvoy composed the song Only A Woman's Heart, title track of A Woman's Heart, the best-selling Irish album in Irish history.-Biography:...
who sang Fairytale of New YorkFairytale of New York"Fairytale of New York" is a song by the Irish rock group The Pogues, released in 1987 and featuring the British singer Kirsty MacColl. The song is an Irish folk style ballad, written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan, and featured on The Pogues' album If I Should Fall from Grace with God...
.
March
- Hunky Dorys Fight Night came to the complex on March 29, 2008. Undefeated Paul McCloskeyPaul McCloskeyPaul McCloskey is an Irish southpaw professional boxer who fights in the light welterweight division....
took on former World Champion Cesar BazanCesar BazanCésar Bazán Pérez is a former professional boxer in the Light Welterweight division and is the former WBC Lightweight Champion.-Professional career:...
. McCloskey beat Bezan over 10 rounds by 100 to 90 points. The first bout was at 6.30pm and McCloskey came into the ring at 9.30pm. The match was broadcast on RTÉ.