NEWS RELEASE

23 August 2011

ASB comes to the Sports Centre party!

ASB Bank has come on board as the naming-rights partner for Wellington's new indoor community sports centre, to be known as ASB Sports Centre - which opens to the public this Saturday (27 August) between 10am and 3pm.

Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown has welcomed today's announcement that ASB has entered into a 10-year agreement deal to secure naming rights for the new centre.

"That ASB has come to the party is excellent news for Wellingtonians - ASB's generous sponsorship will help to keep the centre's running costs down not only for users but also ratepayers.

"ASB will also get to associate itself with one of the most prominent buildings in the region - and one of the most prestigious."

Supporting Wellington's new sports centre fits with ASB's commitment to regional and national sporting initiatives, says Linley Wood, ASB Chief Community Partnership Officer.

"ASB is committed to making a tangible difference in the communities in which we operate, so being involved with this iconic Wellington sports facility demonstrates our support for both grassroots sports activity and for the people of the region," says Ms Wood.

Mayor Wade-Brown says she is highly excited about having the privilege of officially opening the $47.5 million ASB Sports Centre this Saturday.

"It will provide our city with a much-needed quality training and playing indoor community facility and contribute significantly to our aim of getting "more people, more active, more often".

The state-of-the-art centre will be a venue for a large variety of indoor sports, community recreation and schools programmes. It will be able to host local, regional and national sports tournaments.

The new facility is equivalent in size to 12 full-size netball courts. It has the biggest area of sprung sports flooring in New Zealand, retractable seating for up to 2200 spectators around a show court, 317 off-street vehicle parks, a café, sports control rooms, offices for sports codes and a high performance sports facility. A large social activity space and meeting rooms will be available for hire by both facility users and the community.

The Council is also grateful to the New Zealand Community Trust (NZCT) for supporting the sports equipment fit-out of the centre and Sport and Recreation New Zealand (SPARC) which has funded the fit-out of the High Performance Sports Hub.

The management and operation of the centre is in great hands, Centre Manager Craig Hutchings has more than 21 years' experience in the sport and recreation industry and managed a variety of venues including the University of Sydney Sport and Aquatic Centre and University of Queensland sports facilities. Craig holds a Diploma of Teaching (Physical Education) and Graduate Diploma in Business Administration.

In conjunction with city and regional sports organisations, we're planning a range of sport and active recreation programmes and services to reach as many people in the community as possible. NZCT is committed to ongoing support for a 'Youth in Sport Programme' to enable sports codes to deliver school, club and community activities.

NZCT is the largest funder of amateur sport in New Zealand and chairman Peter Dale says the trust is delighted to be involved in this high quality, long-term project.

"We know sport helps grow healthy communities and getting young people into sport is one of the best things we can do," says Mr Dale. "That's why NZCT is pleased to support this wonderful community asset which will benefit thousands of people for many years to come."

The centre is being used as an indoor training venue for the Rugby World Cup during September and October. Scheduled programmes, sports and community activities will begin in late October.

ends

© Scoop Media