Funding cut to pull the plug on Edinburgh swim club

Published on Wednesday 9 April 2008 10:35

AN elite swimming club which trains three of Scotland's Olympic hopefuls claims it has been forced out of business.

The City of Edinburgh Swimming Club will confirm tomorrow that it will close, blaming a funding cut by the sport's governing body Scottish Swimming.

Scottish Swimming, which was yesterday given 818,000 by the Scottish Government to invest in new talent, would only say today it was looking at changing the way it funds clubs in the city, and was carrying out a consultation.

Officials at the City of Edinburgh club, whose members include Commonwealth medallists Kirsty Balfour (pictured above) and Gregor Tait, and newcomer Kris Gilchrist – believe the shake-up will result in the loss of their main funding.

The club, based at the soon-to-be-refurbished Commonwealth Pool, has received 150,000 from the city council over the past three years, but that funding is due to end this year.

The club's chief executive, Jamie Edgar, said he expected an announcement would be made on its future tomorrow.

He said: "The City of Edinburgh Club will be closing due to lack of funding. Scottish Swimming have decided to put their money elsewhere.

"This has been our most successful year, but it's also going to be our last. Swimming has been the most successful sport in Scotland this year.

"We have 14 swimmers with a world-class coach. By focussing on these, we have been able to achieve such good results."

The club was formed in 1996 to "establish a world-class swimming structure" based at the Commonwealth Pool, which is due to close next year for refurbishment and reopen in 2011.

It quickly became one of Britain's leading swimming programmes, and its members hold eight British, three Commonwealth, two European and numerous Scottish records and titles.

These include Tait, who set a new British and Commonwealth record last week as he won the men's 200m backstroke title at the British Championships in Sheffield.

Balfour, 24, who also qualified last week, has won a gold medal at the European Championships and an Olympic bronze. Both swimmers are trained by Frederic Vergnoux, who was Scottish coach of the year last year.

Ashley Howard, the chief executive of Scottish Swimming, said the funding for the sport included an additional 100,000 of "performance focussed funding" to train elite athletes, and that they would be introducing a new "structure" for funding swimming clubs in September, at the start of the new season.

She said: "We want to take swimming in the city to the next level. There are other clubs with promising swimmers. This new project will help bring everyone together."