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Mountain Bike Centre of Scotland Launched at Glentress

A new world class centre of excellence and innovation for Scottish mountain biking has opened in Glentress in the Scottish Borders.

Date : 18/06/2014

The £300,000 multi-use centre will support businesses undertaking commercial product development projects, testing and launch events for the sport.

In its first two years the centre aims to help businesses launch five new products or services, drive three development projects and support 25 business start-ups. Within five years, it aims to generate an additional £1.5m in turnover.

The centre is the result of a project led by Scottish Enterprise in partnership with main funders the Scottish Funding Council and Edinburgh Napier University recognising the importance of mountain biking in Scotland.

The most recent economic impact study has revealed that the sport generates around £120 million pounds annually for the Scottish economy. Mountain biking is Scotland's second-most popular adventure activity after walking and in recent years visitor numbers to Glentress alone have grown from 186,000 to 301,000.

Located near Peebles, near one of the famous 7stanes trails in the Tweed Valley, the site helped to host a round of the Enduro World Series earlier this year, which brought 600 elite riders to the area. The International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) has also rated Scotland as a "global superstar" on two occasions; the first destination to record back-to-back honours in this highly contested category.

Alistair McKinnon, Director for the South of Scotland at Scottish Enterprise, said: "Already we have evidence of a developing culture of innovation between businesses and academia and the centre will build on this with significant engagement from Scottish Enterprise's innovation support".

Cabinet Secretary for Commonwealth Games, Sport, Equalities and Pensioners' Rights, Shona Robison added: "Set in the beautiful scenery of the Borders, Glentress has everything it needs to succeed as a centre of excellence. "Scotland has an enviable international reputation for mountain biking and the new centre at Glentress is a great addition to the area that will help grow employment, tourism and business."