THE training venue for Olympic and Paralympic swimmers has been given the go ahead. Eton Manor in Leyton, to the north of the Olympic Park, will house three 50m swimming pools, one synchronised pool and one water-polo pool that will be used during the Ol

THE training venue for Olympic and Paralympic swimmers has been given the go ahead.

Eton Manor in Leyton, to the north of the Olympic Park, will house three 50m swimming pools, one synchronised pool and one water-polo pool that will be used during the Olympics for training. The site will also be used for wheelchair tennis during the Paralympics. After the Games it will be transformed into a hockey and tennis venue, which will also include five-a-side football pitches.

Olympic Delivery Authority Chairman John Armitt said: "Eton Manor is steeped in sporting history. In the early 1900s it was a community sport sporting facility and later it became Eton Manor Boys' Club and the Old Boys' Club, and it quickly gained a reputation as an elite sporting association."

Demolition of the old sports hall at Eton Manor is already underway and construction on the new venue will begin next spring and be completed by the summer of 2011 for test events.

After the Games Eton Manor will be owned, operated and funded by the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority.