The Heat Moves to Surrey Sports Park
22 December 2009
The Guildford Heat will move its home to Surrey Sports Park when the state of the art sports facility opens early next year.The new facility will enable the Heat’s three national league teams and men’s senior team to train and play matches in a single venue.
Alan McClafferty, manager director of the Heat, explains, “Until now the Heat’s various teams have trained and played at a range of different venues throughout Surrey. We are delighted that the Surrey Sports Park – with its outstanding facilities and ideal location - will be able to accommodate all our needs under one roof. Whilst The Spectrum has been very supportive during its five years as host to the Heat’s BBL League games, unfortunately they could not accommodate all our current and future needs.”
The Heat is one of the UK’s most successful professional basketball teams, having won all the domestic titles over the last five years, and will benefit hugely from the high level of training facilities provided by Surrey Sports Park. In addition to the BBL League team, the Heat trains four national league teams and seven junior teams each week, involving over 1000 people. All of them will benefit from being united in a single location and having access to top of the range facilities.
Alan McClafferty continues, “Our new agreement with Surrey Sports Club will give the club the opportunity to establish a unique identity and an even higher profile in the area. It will enable us to build on our success on the court and take the club to even greater heights.”
In addition to training and playing at the Surrey Sports Park, Guildford Heat will play a major role in raising the profile of basketball at the University with the goal of significantly increasing the accessibility and popularity of basketball among the students. Leading coaches and players will work with University personnel to establish a basketball programme designed to further the University’s overall commitment to producing elite players and teams within a number of high profile sports. The Heat brand will be used to emphasise the Surrey Sports Park’s commitment to basketball. Chad McKnight, Heat player/coach, will work as an ambassador with the University.
Commenting on the new agreement, Surrey Sports Park, Chief Executive, Jason Harborow, said: “Our sports facilities will be among the best in Europe and as such we want to attract the region’s top sports teams. The Surrey Sports Park has a huge role to play in the development of sport in general in the area over the coming years and we believe basketball has a great future in this country and as such will become one of the Surrey Sports Park’s focus sports which will in particular attract families and younger fans”.
The multi-million pound Surrey Sports Park, which is owned by the University of Surrey, is due to open early in 2010 and will be one of the premier training facilities ahead of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Surrey Sports Park has already been registered as a suitable training venue for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012 but as well as catering for elite athletes it will also provide the best and most up to date sport and facilities for anyone interested in sport and fitness everyone.
Notes to Editors
About the Heat
The Heat is one of the UK’s most successful professional basketball teams. They have played in Guildford for four years now enjoying phenomenal success, winning all the domestic titles on offer. The Heat currently coaches in over 85 schools in Guildford and its surrounding areas every week, run seven junior clubs and work with a number of community programmes in the local area aimed at reducing alcohol and substance abuse.
About Surrey Sports Park
The Surrey Sports Park is due to open early in 2010 and will house some of the most up to date sports facilities in the country, as well as Surrey’s first 50 metre pool, there will be glass backed squash courts with 2 show courts for 180 spectators, eight outdoor floodlit tennis courts, two new floodlit artificial grass pitches including one 3rd generation, a 120 station health and fitness suite and a 12m high Climbing Centre with unique bouldering facility. The 250 seat Starbucks Coffee House will be the first Starbucks in Europe to be housed within a multi-sports facility.
Not only will the Surrey Sports Park facilitate able bodied sporting excellence, it will also provide first rate facilities and access for disabled athletes and selection as an official training venue for the Paralympic Games in 2012 has emphasised its top rate provision for disability sport. For more information visit www.surreysportspark.co.uk
About The University of Surrey
The University of Surrey is one of the UK’s leading professional, scientific and technological universities with a world class research profile and a reputation for excellence in teaching and research. Ground-breaking research at the University is bringing direct benefit to all spheres of life – helping industry to maintain its competitive edge and creating improvements in the areas of health, medicine, space science, the environment, communications, defence and social policy. Programmes in science and technology have gained widespread recognition and it also boasts flourishing programmes in dance and music, social sciences, management and languages and law. In addition to the campus on 150 hectares just outside Guildford, Surrey, the University also owns and runs the Surrey Research Park, which provides facilities for 140 companies employing 2,700 staff.
The Sunday Times names Surrey as ‘The University for Jobs' which underlines the University’s growing reputation for providing high quality, relevant degrees.
