The Wales Empire Pool (Welsh: Pwll Nofio'r Gymanwlad), known locally as the Empire Pool, was an international standard swimming pool building, located in Cardiff, Wales from 1958 until it was demolished in 1998. It was a centrepiece for the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games.
Background
The Wales Empire Pool in 1966
A site on Wood Street in the centre of the Cardiff had been identified in the 1930s as a good location for a new swimming baths.[2] However, the construction of a new pool was not realised until Cardiff was chosen as the hosts of the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. The pool's site was immediately next to the Cardiff Arms Park, which was the main stadium for the Games.
Work on the new pool began in January 1956[2] and the completed building was opened by the Lord Mayor of Cardiff, J. H. Morgan, on 18 April 1958,[2] two months before the Empire Games started.[5] The City Council were initially reluctant to finance the new pool, but agreed to do so when confronted with the ultimatum of "No Pool – No Games".[5] The total cost of construction was £650,000[2] and the 1958 Empire Games went on to achieve a financial surplus of £37,000.[5]
Facilities
The main attraction of the Empire Pool was the international standard swimming pool, which measured 55 by 20 yards (50.3 m × 18.3 m) with a depth of between 3 and 16 feet (0.91 and 4.88 m), with diving boards. For spectators there were 1,722 permanent seats.[6] In addition to the main pool, there was an Aeratone™ therapeutic bath,[7]Victorian-style Turkish baths, physiotherapy rooms, hot showers, a restaurant and a large reception area.[6]
In 1970 the main pool was shortened to 50 metres, meeting new international standards.[6]
In 1973 a teaching pool was created for school children, opened by Winifred Mathias, Lord Mayor of Cardiff.[6]
^ abcWilliams, Stewart, ed. (1973). "Chapter 2: J.H.Morgan reviews fifty years of sport in Cardiff". The Cardiff Book: Volume I. Stewart Williams Publishers. pp. 35–36. ISBN0-900807-05-9.
^ abcdLee, Brian (1999). Central Cardiff: The Second Selection. Tempus Publishing. pp. 57–63. ISBN0-7524-1654-5.
^Aeratone bathVictorian Turkish baths: their origin, development, and gradual decline. Retrieved 7 June 2024.