The Mayor of Elmbridge, Councillor Victor Eldridge, was joined by Chelsea's number one goalkeeper, Petr Cech, on Monday 14 August 2006 to open the new £15m multi-purpose leisure facility.

Mike Lockwood, Chief Executive of Elmbridge Borough Council said, "We are delighted that Petr Cech, Peter Kenyon and Alan Shaw, all from Chelsea Football Club, could join us to officially open Xcel."

The Xcel Leisure Complex will be hosting a taster weekend on the 19 and 20 August between 10.00 am and 4.00 pm. Activities will include free rock climbing, a market place full of clubs and organisations setting up home in the complex, taster sessions in basketball, trampolining, tora kai judo, spirit combat, gym, tumble tots, football training with Chelsea Football, kickboxing, badminton and water polo.

You will have the opportunity to sign up for Xcel Membership, a more card - the new leisure card in Elmbridge and loads of classes and courses. You can make your own fruit smoothie whilst burning calories with our smoothie bike, and get your cholesterol and blood pressure tested, but best of all you can come down and see this fantastic new facility for yourself! Find out more here.

The new complex is located in Waterside Drive, Walton on Thames and is open from 6:00 am to 10:00 pm Monday to Friday and 8:00 am to 10:00 pm at the weekend.

Built on time and on budget, the Elmbridge Xcel Leisure facility is home to a 12-metre high climbing wall; a 25-metre, 8 lane, competition swimming pool and a 20-metre learner pool with movable floor - all with spectator viewing for 250 people; A large state of the art gym boasting 120 workstations with inclusive fitness equipment for people with disabilities; Two exercise studios where more than 50 classes for all abilities and ages will take place; A large sports hall suitable for basketball, badminton and much, much more - all with retractable spectator seating for 250 people; Three glass backed squash courts with movable walls; A three-storey soft play area; Crèche with safe outdoor play area to keep children entertained; A large indoor four-rink bowls hall; A function room suitable for weddings, parties and exhibitions; And finally, a relaxing café area with wireless Internet access.