Cause of swimming pool tile damage not yet known

The cause of damage to tiles in the main swimming pool at the Isle of Man's National Sports Centre has not yet been identified.

A 16ft (5m) stretch of two of the lanes in the pool have been closed since November 2023 after a fault was identified with the flooring.

Education, Sport and Culture Minister Daphne Caine told the House of Keys this week that work was still underway to find out the cause of the damage.

She said the department would not fix the tiles "without fully understanding the root cause" as there were concerns it could "happen again".

The swimming complex at the sports centre has faced a number of problems since a £4.4m revamp began in 2018, including lengthy delays to the reopening of the leisure pool and water slides.

When asked by MHK Jason Moorhouse why it had taken so long, Caine said it was a "complex issue" and understanding the cause had "proved to be difficult" as the original work was carried out by a number of contractors.

The department was in dialogue with a "number of people" to understand the cause, and divers had inspected the tiles.

Caine said she shared a sense of "frustration" over the issue and she would provide an update "as soon as I am able".

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