Lympstone ABC

Work to transform Lympstone Amateur Boxing Club into the one of the best equipped in the region, is set to be completed by the end of August - thanks to a £48,000 Olympic cash boost.

Lympstone ABC

The club is one of 350 community sports groups who have been offered a total of £17.4 million in Olympic legacy funding through the Inspired Facilities Fund.

The plans have been approved and the work for the £65,000 refurbishment, which will represent the club’s biggest expansion in its 43-year history, can now start.

The proposals will see the club’s floor space doubled and transformed into a two-storey, state-of-the-art gym.

Once opened, there will be enough room for 50 boxers to train at any one time – there are currently 50 boxers on the books, but only enough floor space for 15.

New showers, central heating, and a new office will also be added.

The refurbishment follows the fire in a shop in the Parade in February 2010 – water used to douse the flames damaged the club.

Club founder and current secretary Neil Parsons used the opportunity to improve and expand the club; the £48,000 of Olympic cash will be added to the £8,000 from the community budget of county councillor Eileen Wragg.

And £9,000 by charity Sported, and £1,000 from the Norman Trust was also donated.

Once reopened the club will carry the London 2012 Inspire mark – celebrating the link to the games.

Mr Parsons said: “We are delighted to secure this grant, which will enable us to upgrade the quality of our premises to meet the needs, not only of our current boxers, but, also, the many who will be attracted to join us as a result of the 2012 games.”

“These plans will double the space and mean that we can have 300 members, not 50 or 60.”

Sport England’s chairman Richard Lewis, said: “This investment will create a fantastic sporting legacy for Lympstone Amateur Boxing Club.

“For hundreds of clubs and tens of thousands of people, 2012 will be the year their local sports facilities got better.”

Lympstone Amateur Boxing Club currently provides boxing for many classed as at risk or are known to the police.

Councillor Wragg said: “I supported this project because I know of the good work the club does in the community, teaching young people physical fitness and discipline.”

MP, Hugo Swire, said: “This investment by Sport England into Lympstone Amateur Boxing Club is fantastic news. The club plays a key role in the community and these new facilities will help the club fulfil its ambitions.”