Moana Pool
Encyclopedia
Moana Pool is the largest swimming pool in the southern half of New Zealand
's South Island
. It is located at the corner of Littlebourne Road and Upper Stuart Street
close to Otago Boys' High School
, on the slopes of Roslyn
, overlooking the centre of the city of Dunedin
.
The largest of Dunedin's four public pools, Moana Pool was built in the early 1960s on the site of the old Moana Tennis Club. Its name (the Māori
word for "sea") is thus only coincidentally related to the pool's facilities. It was opened on 14 November 1964.
Costing 450,000 pounds, the pool was a replacement for the 1914 tepid pools in Lower Moray Place
, which were seen as being inadequate for the city's modern needs. The new pool was designed by architect Bill Hesson and Ian Ballantyne of the Dunedin City Council engineers department.
The main pool is of Olympic dimensions (50m by 17.5m), and is kept heated to 28.5 degrees celsius. It can be divided by a moveable bulkhead into two 25m pools. The Moana Pool complex was expanded in 2000-2001, and now includes a leisure and wave complex, two waterslides, a learner's pool (completed in 1965), a lap pool, and Olympic standard diving facilities.
Moana Pool has been used for regional and national championships in swimming, diving, and water polo, and is a regular host of the New Zealand Masters' Games, which are held in Dunedin every two years.
Two of the pools within the Moana Pool complex were renamed in November 2010 to honour double-Olympic
gold medallist Danyon Loader
and noted coach Duncan Laing
, who spent much of their careers training and working at Moana Pool.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
's South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
. It is located at the corner of Littlebourne Road and Upper Stuart Street
Stuart Street, Dunedin
Stuart Street is one of the main streets of Dunedin, New Zealand. As with many of Dunedin's streets, it is named after a main street in Edinburgh, Scotland....
close to Otago Boys' High School
Otago Boys' High School
Otago Boys' High School is one of New Zealand's oldest boys' secondary schools, located in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. It was founded on 3 August 1863 and moved to its present site in 1885. The main building was designed by Robert Lawson and is regarded as one of the finest Gothic revival...
, on the slopes of Roslyn
Roslyn, Otago
Roslyn is a major residential and retail suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located above the city centre on the ridge which runs in a crescent around the central city's western edge. It is to the northwest of the city centre, immediately above the Town Belt. Roslyn's 2001...
, overlooking the centre of the city of Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
.
The largest of Dunedin's four public pools, Moana Pool was built in the early 1960s on the site of the old Moana Tennis Club. Its name (the Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
word for "sea") is thus only coincidentally related to the pool's facilities. It was opened on 14 November 1964.
Costing 450,000 pounds, the pool was a replacement for the 1914 tepid pools in Lower Moray Place
Moray Place, Dunedin
Moray Place is an octagonal street which surrounds the city centre of Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. The street is intersected by Stuart Street , Princes Street and George Street...
, which were seen as being inadequate for the city's modern needs. The new pool was designed by architect Bill Hesson and Ian Ballantyne of the Dunedin City Council engineers department.
The main pool is of Olympic dimensions (50m by 17.5m), and is kept heated to 28.5 degrees celsius. It can be divided by a moveable bulkhead into two 25m pools. The Moana Pool complex was expanded in 2000-2001, and now includes a leisure and wave complex, two waterslides, a learner's pool (completed in 1965), a lap pool, and Olympic standard diving facilities.
Moana Pool has been used for regional and national championships in swimming, diving, and water polo, and is a regular host of the New Zealand Masters' Games, which are held in Dunedin every two years.
Two of the pools within the Moana Pool complex were renamed in November 2010 to honour double-Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold medallist Danyon Loader
Danyon Loader
Danyon Loader ONZM is an Olympic champion, former World Record holding swimmer from New Zealand, based in Dunedin...
and noted coach Duncan Laing
Duncan Laing
Andrew James Duncan Laing, CNZM, OBE, , generally known as Duncan Laing, was a New Zealand swimming coach based in Dunedin...
, who spent much of their careers training and working at Moana Pool.