An Olympic skate park has officially opened in the borough following a £1.2million makeover.

The redevelopment of Darwen's Junction 4 Skatepark's, which was close to closure at the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, has now been completed.

The work means that the facility has been transformed from one of the smallest skate parks in the country to one of the best.

Olympic BMX cycling gold medallist Charlotte Worthington is already a regular visitor having trained there for last year's Tokyo games.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Cllr Phil Riley with Wayne Wild and Anthony Ramsey at the Skatepark

Representatives from Blackburn with Darwen Council were among those in attendance at the grand opening, and said: “We were incredibly proud to be invited to the official opening of Junction4 Skatepark last night (Friday).

“It’s had a £1.2m makeover - transforming it from one of the smallest skate parks in the country to one of the very best!

“We’ve helped Anthony and his team there along the way - including securing funding through the Darwen Town Deal - and what a brilliant job they’ve done! This is a facility we can all be proud of!”

The stadium will provide top-class training facilities for skateboarders and BMX riders and includes a street skate plaza, dirt jump and pump track, and a BMX course.

There will also be tracks for beginners to hone their skills and prepare to become the Olympic stars of the future.

Speaking at the end of May, Anthony Ramsey, who runs the sporting venue next to Darwen Vale High School, said: “I still can’t believe this is happening.

“To see how the whole skate park has been transformed over the last year really is a dream.

“When we took over the park in 2017, we grew the turnover by 500 per cent in the first year.

“But when the pandemic hit two years later, we were forced to shut and were on the brink of having to close our doors forever which was just heart breaking.”

The facility will be open to the public from July 1 and you can find out more by visiting their website.