Politicians have voiced their disappointment at Perth missing out on becoming the home of Scotland’s National Performance Centre for Sport (NPCS).
Perth and Kinross Provost Liz Grant joined Ian Miller, leader of Perth and Kinross Council, in stating they felt that the Perth bid had had a good chance of succeeding.
Both were reacting to the announcement made by a Scottish Government steering group this week that bids from Dundee City Council, Edinburgh’s Heriot Watt University and a partnership between Stirling University and Stirling Council will go through to the next stage of the bidding process.
Perth and Kinross Council had launched their bid for the national sports centre with former St Johnstone Football Club chairman Geoff Brown.
Mr Miller said he was “very disappointed” to learn of the decision that Perth had lost out.
“Our bid was a well-considered and ambitious proposal to bring the NCPS to the city of Perth, backed by a sound business plan and the support of key partners,” he said.
“We made our pitch based on Perth’s superb central location, thriving sports and leisure culture, and the regeneration of a key site. However, there were strong contenders from Scotland’s other cities, including those with a background of sports science research.”
Provost Grant added: “I am very disappointed that Perth lost out on the national sports centre. I felt we made a good bid, but I don’t want to take anything away from the successful bids.”
The national performance centre will nurture sporting talent from across Scotland.