PICTURE 1: Looking through the Telegraph image archive it becomes obvious that one of the largest sources of picture opportunities was, and still is, Greenock Sports Centre. 

There are enough shots of the many activities that have taken place there to fill the pages of the paper for days on end and this has presented me with quite a task in selecting only five pictures from the past. 

This thin slice of the Greenock Sports Centre’s rich past has been cut from the mid to late nineties and I hope the images bring back happy memories for the many people featured.

Playschemes were dotted all over Inverclyde and served to give parents a break, and more importantly, allowed kids to play together and discover new interests and sports. 

This group of youngsters took part in a rollerblading session which was a great success. 

The group happily took time out to gather for the picture, taken in 1998 at the Greenock Sports Centre entrance. 

PICTURE 2: Taken in the year 2000, this picture shows coach David Provan with aspiring footballers when they took part in an all-day training event. 

Readers may recognise a famous face at the far left of the front row!

Football coaching was, and still is, just one of the many opportunities Greenock Sports Centre provides to those seeking a healthy lifestyle and a chance to enjoy participating in their chosen sport. 

With an array of top quality sports facilities across Inverclyde, Greenock Sports Centre still stands as one of our community’s best sporting venues, where people of all ages and abilities can take part in personal fitness programmes, schools can hold major tournaments and people can find advice and expertise on a range of activities. 

As the drive continues to help people, young and old, to keep fit, Greenock Sports Centre’s future must be assured and I am sure I will be visiting again soon with my camera in hand. 

PICTURE 3: Part of the great success the Sports Centre enjoys is down to the excellent continuity of staff and  their years of combined experience. 

This picture shows some faces that will be familiar to anyone who pursues a healthy lifestyle at any of the Inverclyde sports centres today.

It was taken when the group presented a cheque for Help the Aged back in 1995.

PICTURE 4: Greenock Sports Centre is a place of fun, even in the dreich July holiday rain, which is all too common. 

Sports centre staff member Craig Bradley provided the perfect wet summer photo opportunity with his umbrella as kids joined in on this fun weather shot taken in 1998.

PICTURE 5: In this picture, taken in 1996, a young Victoria McInnes prepared to enter an inflatable disco which was set up in one of the giant sports halls. 

Kids removed their shoes before entering to avoid the disco being punctured, something that would have been a considerable drawback to the day’s fun!