Olympic bronze medallist Joanne Goode officially opened the new Gosling Sports Park sports hall surface on Saturday.

The mixed doubles medal winner from the Sydney 2000 Games was greeted by a host of local badminton players, as well as Welwyn Hatfield Sports and Physical Activities Alliance chairman Dave Bartlett.

Players of all ages and abilities gathered to view the opening, and get the chance to hit a shuttle around with Goode.

After a rigorous bidding process, the Gosling Sports Park sports development team secured a generous funding grant rewarded by Badminton England.

They were then able to carry out the much needed redevelopment work on the sports hall flooring.

As part of this project the sports hall has received a complete face lift and has been replaced with a new state of the art multi-use floor.

Sports development manager Claire Smith said: “The team here at Gosling Sports Park have worked very hard to secure the grant, of which we owe our thanks and gratitude to Badminton England.

“The sports hall floor looks amazing and we are sure that every team, club and sport that is played in the hall will reap the benefits.

“We will continue to develop and create new badminton sessions, and other sports hall sports from now and into the future.”