Olympian coming to Napier

New Zealand Rowing Men's Single Scull Mahe Drysdale - during the media day at the Lake Karapiro, for rowing crews who have qualified or trying to qualify for the Rio Olympics. 4 May 2016 New Zealand H

Olympian Mahe Drysdale is coming to Napier for The Future in Motion.

The gold medallist will speak frankly about his road to success at the Pettigrew Green Arena open day.

He will offer sporting and training tips - as well as plenty of opportunity to view his medals and grab his autograph.

His diverse training programme will be one topic of discussion - he not only rows, but cycles, due to a serious back injury he sustained in 2010.

But the open day is more than an opportunity to rub shoulders with Mahe.

The Future in Motion will be an opportunity to try out some new sports and shoot, row, cycle or kick for prizes.

The day also offers information on a range of Napier City Council sporting projects either under way or still at the proposal stage.

These include the proposed multi-use sports facility, and the Napier Aquatic Centre upgrade and how that fits into the Napier Aquatic Strategy.

Consultation is currently under way with residents and ratepayers to help inform a detailed business case about the Napier Aquatic Centre and options for its future, to be presented to Napier City Council next month.

Antoinette Campbell, director community services, said she hoped locals would pop in to the open day and share their own thoughts for the future of Napier's sport and recreational assets.

"The Napier Aquatic Centre is one of our city's best assets but it needs work. The Future in Motion is a great opportunity to come along and find out what Napier City Council could do with it, and have a say on the range of other projects we have in the pipeline," she says.

If the detailed business case for the multi-use sports facility also stacks up, its most likely site is adjacent to the Pettigrew Green Arena.

For use by all ages and abilities, the facility's three full-sized basketball courts would be particularly useful to sporting codes such as volleyball, futsal and basketball.

Representatives from these codes have already told council that they are running out of, or have already run out of space to hold games.

There will also be displays and information available on the Destination Playground, which is being built at Anderson Park, the Napier Skate Park, and the new Napier Splash n Play at Pandora Pond.

The open day Saturday, November 19 from 1pm.