Maynooth University expands with €19m sports science centre
Image of the new facility at Maynooth University
MAYNOOTH University (MU) is embarking on the construction of a dedicated €19 million Sport Science Centre which will include facilities to promote health and wellbeing on campus.
The university received planning permission from Kildare County Council in late 2024 for a three-storey extension to its Phoenix Sports and Restaurant Building.
The new extension will include a state-of-the-art student gym; a teaching sports/multi-purpose hall; changing facilities; sports science research and teaching laboratories and flexible office space for sports science staff with capacity for expansion. MU hopes that the provision of these extensive modern gym facilities will encourage students to visit the gym regularly, promoting wellbeing.
The plans, drawn up by a team led by Reddy Architecture and Urbanism, envisage that the gym will be prominently located at the front of the new building, “making sports activities visible and promoting student health and wellbeing. The entire ground floor of the extension will be devoted to the gym and changing facilities, providing students with a much-needed, flexible and functional space”.
Michael Rafter, director of estates at MU, said: “Our primary goal remains to provide modern university facilities for our students to enhance their well-being and positive experience while at Maynooth University, and we believe this scheme will provide a significant and much-needed contribution to student and campus life.”
The new centre will also provide students and staff with educational opportunities in a modern and comfortable teaching environment. The new Sport Science Department and the Sports Office will both be located in the complex, fostering collaboration.
It is anticipated that work will start on the new building in summer 2025, and open its doors to students and staff in Jan 2027.
Dr Jack Hickey of MU’s Department of Sport Science and Nutrition, said: “It will provide a bespoke space for teaching and research with labs for testing. It will be a dedicated space on campus where we can do that research.” The new building will also house office space, with capacity for future expansion for the Department of Sport Science and Nutrition, which was established in 2023.
Prof Tim Thompson, MU’s vice president of students and learning, said: “A strong sports offer can really enhance the student experience, as well as provide wider teaching and learning opportunities.”
