Since 2002, and over the last four Olympic and Paralympic cycles, the UK Sports Institute has evolved quietly and effectively into an organisation consistently performing at a world-leading level, contributing to over 1,000 British Olympic and Paralympic medals. Through its network of seven high performance centres across England, the UK Sports Institute is able to provide athletes and coaches with access to high quality facilities that are specifically designed for elite athletes. Sheffield is one of these facilities which caters for a variety of sports including: Boxing, Diving, ParaTable Tennis and Para Badminton plus other Paralympic and Olympic athletes based around Yorkshire who utilise UKSI Performance Services can also access the space.

Project Overview

The gym previously was split into two rooms and a lot of the equipment as on raised areas making it quite inaccessible for a number of Para Athletes. At the end of the Paris Olympic cycle it was decided to invest in the Strength and Conditioning facility at Sheffield to make it more accessible for Paralympic athletes, upgrade the flooring and replace some of the pieces of equipment. PB were selected due to their design concepts, product knowledge, user knowledge and customisation options. A number of bespoke design features were integrated into certain pieces of equipment.

The room design involved working with the Performance team and contractors to create a professional performance gym environment suitable for all athletes. Internal changes were made to create necessary changes, floorplans were designed and equipment list ascertained to meet the specifications outlined by the requirements of the S&C and medical teams.

Once athletes had left to attend the Paris Olympics and Paralympics the facility was closed while the work was carried out and reopened at the end of October with the delivery and installation being coordinated efficiently and effectively.

The equipment installed included:

• Elite Power Racks x 4
• Rack Integrated Smith x 2
• Rack Integrated Pulleys x 2
• Elite Glute Ham x 2
• 45 degree Dual Leg Press
• Seated Leg Extension/Curl
• Belt Squat
• Modular Storage systems between Racks
• Ecore Performance Flooring
• Branded Lifting Platforms