Features

For 40 years the city centre pool has claimed its distinctive place on the city's skyline. Love it or loathe it, the building has always generated strong feelings. Its innovative design was by disgraced Yorkshire architect John Poulson (he was jailed in 1974 for his part in a bribery and corruption scandal). The building has a distinctive 1960s look.

The diving area Leeds International Pool

Over the years the pool has provided a base for the City of Leeds Swimming Club to become one of the country's leading clubs. Its proximity to the centre of Leeds made it an ideal place for recreational swimmers too.

The building was often described as 'the Olympic pool' but in fact it was too narrow to meet Olympic criteria and was actually built to a lesser International standard.

Despite a campaign mounted to save the International Pool, that described the pool as "...a dramatic building, strongly geometric, uncompromising in character, and a landmark for the city", the Westgate facility will close permanently on Sunday October 21 2007. The valuable site will be redeveloped.

A replacement pool will open at the John Charles Centre for Sport in Beeston on Monday 29 October 2007.

You say:

I dived at the pool for nearly ten years, I have some good memories of being there but that's nothing to do with the building. Lets face it, it's been falling to pieces for years and now they have built an nice new pool so what is everyone complaining about! tear it down who cares?
Rob

I have been going to the pool since i was 6 years old the pool holds so much memories and character that will be hard to get out of the new pool. I am a swimmer for leeds and loved every minute of the pool, cockroaches yes, mucky, yes, but this is made the LIP. At galas it held the most fantastic atmosphere with swimmers coaches and parents all doing the YMCA before starting the swimming!, this is something that we will not get out of any other pool, it had its own character did the LIP. But I and all the swimmers are looking forward to the pool and its technology. Now been 14 i enjoyed my time at the pool.
Ryan Mortimer

Shame on you LCC.
Leslie Haris

I have just had my last swim at the LIP on its closing day. It is a sad day for the city of Leeds and its people. I have been swimming there 3 times a week for the last nine years and will be sad now it has gone. Like myself, many of its regular users either worked in the city or lived close by. I don't believe the new pool will see so many users, being located in a rather grim industrial estate with poor transport links and difficult to get to during busy periods. (I drove to South Leeds stadium recently and got stuck in the traffic so I know!) Its the usual story I suspect, the costs of refurbishment were inflated in attempt to justify the predetermined decision to do away with the place, and the value of the site will have been too tempting to the council. Back handers and hypocrisy are typical of many coucils these days. So much for encouraging people to live in the city and use its amenities. The people of Leeds have been robbed of this facility for ever. Shame on you, Leeds City Council.
David Townson

I worked on it during construction in the sixties, I was labouring for Philips plasterers doing the floor screeding, the cowling on the concrete mixer was broke, so we had to prop it up with a piece of wood, one morning I was winding the starting handle, and the cowling came down, and broke my thumb,that was me finished, no ambulance chasers in them days,I was sacked on the sick, and never got a penny off em, thats my memory of the pool, oh I did take my kids swimming their a few times.
Rod Thornton

my son swims for city of leeds club and we will be glad to move - there are many tales of cockroaches joining in for a swim and the seats are so uncomfortable for spectators - but the club is not using the full length of the new pool for training and our particular group has been given a new time to train that even the 2 coaches cannot get to!the gala entry fees have gone up also - better the devil you know perhaps?
Jaki

Although living in Harrogate, I often came to Leeds for work and would always make time for a swim at the International Pool. It is a tragedy that the City Council are wantonly destroying this valuable city centre amenity at the very time that more people are living in the city centre again.
Richard Hutchings

I was a pupil at West Leeds Girls' High School and I was among those chosen to act as guides/usherettes at the opening swimming meeting. I remember seeing Bobby McGregor swim there.
Marilyn Chapman