27/02/2011 - Permalink

Swimming centre supports Winter Olympics athlete

Related topics: Leisure, culture and heritage
Great Britain’s Bobsleigh pilot and Winter Olympic hopeful Kerry Morgan

Great Britain’s bobsleigh pilot and Winter Olympic hopeful Kerry Morgan with her Bobsleigh

Shropshire Council’s leisure services have been helping Great Britain’s bobsleigh pilot and Winter Olympic hopeful Kerry Morgan on her way to potential Winter Olympics glory.

Local athlete Kerry is a regular member of the Quarry Swimming and Fitness Centre in Shrewsbury, and is undergoing part of her tough training schedule at the centre in preparation for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics.

Councilor Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for culture and leisure, said

“I am delighted that Kerry is taking the opportunity to train at one of our sports centres.  This will be a great opportunity to show a local person excelling in their chosen sport and receiving help from their local leisure facility.  I’m sure our dedicated staff will provide Kerry with the support in which to make her preparations, and wish her the very best.”

Kerry, who was training at the Quarry Swimming Centre on Friday 25 February 2011, said:

“I am in the early stages of preparation for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, training most days at the Quarry with my coach.  It is so important to have these sorts of facilities around you when you’re pushing yourself everyday in an aim to improve yourself in every way you can.”

Councillor Andrew Bannerman, local councillor for Quarry and Coton Hill, added:

“The Quarry centre is a very popular facility in the centre of town.  It is a feather in its cap that it can offer specialist facilities for a high level athlete like Kerry Morgan, as well as providing a fun way of keeping fit and healthy to the rest of us.”

Kerry, who joined the RAF back in 2004, has been involved with bobsleighing since 2007 after being spotted by the GB team bobsleighing coaches in Austria.  Kerry said:

“The RAF camp was being held at the same time as the British team were practising, and from being spotted by the GB team coaches it was all go from there.  Four years down the line I am in the early stages of preparation for 2014.”