Olympic Experience at Richmond Olympic Oval

Our time at the Richmond Olympic Experience was nothing short of amazing! The exhibits were not only inspiring but also incredibly engaging, highlighting the triumphs of all athletes in a way that made us deeply connected to the Olympic spirit. The interactive simulators were great. We challenged ourselves to the Olympic test, taking on physical feats of strength, agility, and skill that left us feeling like athletes in the heat of competition. Whether you’re a sports enthusiast or simply looking for a unique and active experience, the Richmond Olympic Experience offers something for all ages. It’s the perfect blend of history, inspiration, and hands-on excitement. We’ll definitely be back for another round of fun and competition!

Great experience for kids because it has the simulation for several sports. Free entrance fee the 1st Thursday of the month.

Large and spacious facility. Very well maintained and great use of a former Olympic facility. There are variety of sports you can do at the Oval. I went bouldering

Huge arena. A great place to send your kids to learn some sports here.

It’s a very interactive museum upstairs. I think kids would love it as there are simulators for lots of experiences and each exhibit has an interactive component which makes it more engaging. Everything seems pretty new and well kept.

Interactive exhibits are OK but limited in number and in true interactivity. But they’ve done the best they can within the right space constraints at the Oval. Staff and volunteers are friendly and plentiful. Some volunteers have somewhat limited knowledge about the sports, equipment, and/or memorabilia on display. That’s fine but frustrating when they hover around in effort to “explain” everything to guests despite their lack of true knowledge.

This is the stop on our trip with the most pictures. The kids, parents and grandparents had a fun interactive time. The docents were very nice and full of interesting information. It wasn’t too busy. The simulators were the best and really helped my kids understand the sport better. We also liked the exhibit of mascots, exhibit of torches and exhibit of medals. The docents were very kind and encouraged my youngest child (4) to try a couple of activities. And she loved them. Not shown here, but loved are: reaction time games, paraolympic skiing simulator, exhibits of torches and medals and a video game that mimics your body but shows the neural system.

The Olympic experience at the Richmond Oval was fun and entertaining but much smaller than I thought it was going to be. There are some really fun simulations that you can take part in including riding in a bobsleigh, maneuvering a sit ski, and completing a ski jump. As an Olympics fanatic, it was a must-do for me, but I definitely don't think everyone would enjoy it. I would plan about an hour to an hour-and-a-half.

I went here for the one day belaying lesson at the climbing gym. I picked this place as they offer lessons at more affordable price (65 CAD) compared to the the other competitor within Greater Vancouver area. Climbing shoes, harness, and grigri rental is included in the lesson price. The instruction given was clear, and helpful. They also tested me by purposely doing things wrong (grigri on the wrong side, the rope is too long, etc), and asked me to verify that everything is good to go. I got the chance to belay the other lesson taker, and the instructor would pointed out what habit I need to fix. After the lesson, I got a piece of paper to review what I learned today. I also got a bit of free time to climb on my own. 7 days trial is included in lesson so that you can climb and practice more. The oval climbing gym offers bouldering (small section), lead, and speed climbing. Pretty solid climbing gym in my opinion!

We toured the interior and it was a pretty amazing. Different sport groups we saw were: ice hockey, basketball, volleyball, rock climbing, exercise room, yoga. The place is huge with a gift shop on the main entry way. Street parking.

In the past I've done summer camps at the Oval when I was younger and that how I found climbing. I did almost every single camps there was and each was an amazing experience the coaches were awesome, so nice, and took care of us (the kids). We went on so many amazing field trips and played a lot of games with others campers, it was really fun and I've never had an experience quite like it. After the summer I decided I would begin climbing lessons, it's been four years now and I'm NEVER going to forget the time I've had here. I met so many great people it was BY FAR the best group of people I've ever met even the coaches were absolutely incredible, they gave individual attention to you when you needed it, and they always try to make it fun, but most importantly they cared. The coaches there were by far the best educators over all that I've ever had in all my years of doing sports or being in school. The staff at the Oval are always nice and helpful and they're some of the best people I've known. Thank you for the past four years of my life, it has benefited me in various ways that will stay with me for the rest of my life and I'll never forget the time I spent here.

I have mixed feelings about the Oval like many others. Pros: Beautiful big space with natural light Access to variety of sports area/equipment Sports courts, ice rink Rock climbing wall - they constantly change the routes and replace the rocks/ropes. The staff are the best! Free climbing with membership, extra but discounted charge for rental Free parking with membership Not too busy during the day in the gym Lots of squat racks and cardio machines; they also recently replaced all the gym floors with new sound dampening floor panels Excellent fitness instructors & they added TRX to their free classes Batting cages on select days They host lots of events (fun for watching/playing... not so fun when it's loud and the parking lot is crowded) They bring in experts and host special clinics Yyoga and the Medical clinics are in the same building ROX experience - Olympic museum with interactive displays, definitely worth checking out with your kids Con: Some of the members are incredibly frustrating and refuse to treat this place with respect, which is why I only come during the day time when most of them are in school. Unfortunately, I haven't seen the gym staff do anything to enforce this. I wish they would suspend these frequent offenders. Expensive - I have a corporate discount but it's very expensive if I want to bring friends here to work out with me. When they host some events, ie. Cheerleading competition - they had the music blasting so loud I could hear it through my in ear headphones. It was incredibly loud. They've hosted other events and it wasn't nearly this loud Rox store is pretty expensive too even when they are on sale. The food at the O cafe is not very good.

I like this place.its clean and staff here are friendly. Came here to climb the wall. Had a great time. They change the climbing wall quite frequently. Love it. Also went upstairs to hit the gym. Very fully equipped gym. You can go on living social to pick up a day pass for $8 or two people for $14. This is an awesome ongoing deal. Rental is extra. But you can basically enjoy your day with the amount of things you can do here. Definitely coming back. Thumbs up here.

Booking a child's birthday party here is like having a tooth pulled without anaesthetic and dealing with insane bureaucracy at the same time. I love my workouts but wow, go anywhere else to book. You might have more fun taking everyone to wait in line to renew their drivers licence. It has taken over a month to confirm my party and the service reminds me of getting a work visa in a country known for inefficiency. I can't even go on. Believe me, if you accomplish booking a party you deserve a gold medal.

Poorly managed, toxic community and not worth the price! Funny enough, I actually kind of grew up at this gym. I first started exercising at the oval when I was 16 (2009), I was even there when they had to temporarily fit the weight-room in the basement to accommodate the olympics setup! Those were the golden days, the community at the time were already a predominantly younger crowd; but they were at least serious about fitness and showed good gym etiquette at putting away weights, wiping off mats and operated swiftly when in groups. Oh how the times have changed - As another reviewer had mentioned, this place is now fully operated by immature high-school kids who often partake their exercises in groups of three at a minimum. They can usually be spotted wearing gymshark gears, taking selfies in the elevator with an unimpressive physique and shattering mirrors with dumbbells that they did 8 sets of bicep curls with. But wait, let me tell you what's worse. YES it gets WORSE! - beyond the immature children that occupies this gym, what really killed it for me were those wannabe powerlifters. Holy moly, these guys would take up the squat rack for at least TWO HOURS religiously minimum at a time. Not to mention they also need to occupy at least 10 feet of extra space with their foam roll, belt, shoes, gym bags and pre-workouts powder (like wtf right?). Best part is they chalk up the whole place so you can't sit anywhere without getting it on your pants. So we have one group of people that only lifts for clout and instagram fame and another group of extremists who thinks deadlifting 500+ lbs means ultimate superiority... You bet there's going to be some toxicity in this gym! Regular lifters like myself usually ends up being the collateral damage. In other words, if you're not coming in the gym with knee wraps then you must be rolling with those teenagers.- I had an egomaniac powerlifter that wanted to fight me for looking at my phone while resting in between sets. (Normally I'm against this but I wasn't even sitting on the equipment for that long he just stereotyped me right off the bat). He then proceeds to grunt profusely while dropping his weights for every SINGLE rep of deadlift for the next 45 minutes. I was pretty upset when this happened until I saw his form... Jesus, let's just say he'll be lucky to walk normally when he's 50 if he keeps up with his atrocious routine. Complaining to the staff is like speaking to a brick wall, everyone who works there are extremely jaded, unprofessional and incompetent. If you need proof, just look at some of the idiotic gym layouts, unprofitable service lines (shop, cafe and museum) and incredibly stupid traffic controls during event hours. The place desperately needs new leadership with a new board that isn't probably filled with arts majors or incompetent grads from somewhere like BCIT. Most gymers I knew from the old days have already quit their memberships. I myself are in the process to switch to Steve Nash. I'm sad that they couldn't improve the client experience as time past. Instead, they've only made consistent downgrades to the facility throughout the years that have irreversibly attract the wrong crowd and diluted the name of an "olympics" facility. All I have to say is I am not the first to share this bitter sentiment, neither will I be the last.

Drop in is pretty expensive if you only want to do one sport but definitely worth it if you want to do multiple things. Rates are available on their website and vary based on age (e.g. $11.50 for 25 years old and $16 if over 25 years old). It is a beautiful facility with space for badminton, volleyball, basketball, table tennis and rock climbing. They also have a ice rink, batting/golf cage and a gym area with a variety of equipments. If you're here to play badminton, they don't require you to wear white soled shoes on their court. They do badminton racquet rentals and sell birdies for $2.50 each (might be cheaper to buy a tube of birdies prior to heading in). Otherwise, basketball and table tennis paddles are all rentable for free at the facility.

Mixed review here, what the facility has to offer is amazing, numerous courts, building is spacious and well ventilated, and the workout equipments are top of the line. The staff are generally pretty friendly and easy going, able to help you with anything. If I were to review this place a couple years back it would've been a 5 out of 5 star review. However, in recent years, Oval has become quite overpopulated especially with "Fu Er Dai" kids that seem to have no comprehension of gym etiquette or any etiquette for that matter. The lockers are usually left in a pretty bad state by the hordes of these "Fu Er Dai" kids. Due to the increase of members, I thought that we'd finally get some renovations done to expand the gym floor but instead they chose to build a museum and a gift shop, which in my opinion, are not generating them any significant revenue.

Haven't been back here since 2010 Olympics. The facilities are really nice! Good mixed use of facility space, rather than just for winter sports. The pool and fitness centre are really nice! Top quality equipment, spacious, clean, and professional training services. A little pricey for drop-in fees ($19). Other than price, including pay parking, really nice.

I've been a member of the Richmond Oval for several years. I'm of two minds about this place, but my overall recommendation is: Stay Away. Compared to other gyms in the Lower Mainland (in particular the ubiquitous Steve Nash Fitness World, which sets a very low bar), the Oval is a better facility. It has a lot of strength-training equipment and free weights, separate personal training and high-performance gyms, a half dozen basketball courts, two full hockey rinks, climbing wall, indoor track, etc etc ... far more than any other facility in the area. All of this was put in place years ago as part of the post-Olympics Community Legacy Program; the building was largely paid for by government. Moreover, the training staff, and the front-line staff in general, are all pleasant, professional and highly qualified in their jobs. I feel sorry for them, actually; they're good people working in a very difficult situation. Having described its strengths, the Oval does have several very big problems which can be summarized by three words: Hubris, Neglect and Immaturity. First, there's the ROX museum and gift shop, a monument to hubris. Over the past two years, literally MILLIONS of dollars (reportedly over $6 million) have been poured into building an Olympic museum on the gym training floor, taking away a significant amount of space that had been dedicated to workout facilities. At the same time, most of the lobby was turned into a large gift shop. Neither sees any meaningful visitor traffic. They've been open for months and are terrible money-losers, just as every member knew they would be when they were first announced. The existence of the museum is annoying to members because they see tremendous resources, and management attention, squandered on this ill-conceived project while the core business of the facility is neglected. While millions have been spent on this boondoggle, over half of the lockers in the men's locker room are broken (the key locks break) and most have been broken since I joined the Oval four years ago. I expect a similar situation exists in the women's locker room. More seem to get broken every week. Nothing constructive is done about this (they did recently install a few new lockers on a test basis, after years of complaints. The ones they chose are highly impractical for reasons I won't go into here but that I have explained to management.) Replacing all of the lockers with much better ones would cost a small fraction of what was spent on the museum and gift shop. It doesn't get done. Speaking of lockers, some months ago some small "gym bag" lockers were put on the gym floor. They installed 24 of these, and I'm told they spent over $43,000, or just under $2,000 per cubby-hole locker ... a box with a door and an electronic combination lock. Like the museum, this seems to be a very ineffective use of limited funds, much of that provided by taxpayers. One wonders where all of that money actually goes. Finally, there is the immaturity, reflected in the overwhelming number of adolescents and teens who have overtaken the building. In particular I refer to teenagers driving the $100,000+ cars bearing "Novice driver" stickers that fill the gym's parking lot, spoiled rich kids who exhibit many of the churlish, self-entitled behaviours for which that crowd has become notorious in the region. On a typical evening they represent about 80% of the people there. I like kids, generally speaking, but these kids do not exhibit the maturity and responsibility that is needed for them to use the gym without adult supervision. They set fires in lockers (this has happened multiple times), routinely leave trash such as food waste and used bloody bandages laying around as if their maid would pick up after them, use lockers as trashcans for the above, roam through the facility in gangs, monopolizing benches and equipment for extended periods while they chatter and message on their cellphones, never replace their weights (they evidently assume there are servants to do that), scoff at efforts to enforce any kind of gym etiquette and make the experience uncomfortable for everyone else. Many of the "adult" members have already left. Most of the others complain bitterly about what this place has become. There have even been incidents of violence, including a knife being pulled by a teenager. The Oval has come to resemble a high school gym without the gym teacher. Not enough room here to describe all of the problems! For more details, please see my review on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1Vqz0Ie

This is a magnificent building. The style is very clean and modern with tall ceilings and of course oval in shape. They have facilities for everything there. Volleyball, hockey, basketball, batminton, track/running, ice skating and a fitness center upstairs that overlook the whole 2nd floor where all the action is going on. I'm sure there may be more sports, but that's all I happen to notice while I was watching some friends play volleyball. I even saw some rooms for birthday parties as well. What a great idea to keep your kids active and tire them out for bed time. The only downside are the price $11.50 for drop in and the parking ($1 per hour). The drop in is a little pricey, but it's expected to run such a new and beautiful facility. The parking style is old school because basically you have to park your car and walk all the way to the parking meter to buy your ticket. After purchasing your ticket, you have to walk all the way back to your car, which isn't a problem unless it's a super busy day and you have to park really far. Other than these factors, this place is gorgeous.

If you're a member.. you get unlimited drop ins.. which is WONDERFUL! All the facilities and equipment is NEW! Downsides: - Not many changing rooms :( Only washrooms.. so no benches, which makes changing .. quite difficult. Especially when the sinks are all soaked with water. - Parking is $1 an hour.. (which isn't too bad, if you're comparing it to DT Vancouver, after olympic price jack).. but if you're already paying for membership to use their gym and facilities.. why make us pay again for parking :( Money Stealing machine i tell you. - Volleyball player? They don't have net dividers. So if you backwall your hit/serve.. get ready to serve it into the back of someones head, or run for it! Please also remember that the Ovals main purpose was to host the Winter Olympics Ice Skating Event. Thus, its a no brainer that it has an open ice skating rink. AND FOR THAT.. YOU SHOULD Dress warmly :P Its super collllllddd! You might want to dress in layers :) And take extra time to warm up those delicate muscles of yours. But yes.. the Oval.. is TRES SPECTACULAR! :)

I was just here for an event a couple of months back. I'm not sure how it is to be a member but the facilities were really nice for those of us visiting for our tournament. Parking was easy and either inexpensive or free I can't remember which but it didn't set us back a lot. They have a little café that sell sandwiches and coffee in the lobby also. Besides it was just kind of fun to see were some of the Olympics had taken place and take some cheesy selfies.

The Olympic Oval is a beautiful facility with a strong emphasis on community sports. The fitness equipment is great from an ergonomic standpoint and I enjoy having my own tv screen. The washrooms are clean and there are more than enough free lockers in the changing room. I have tried a few of their fitness classes including yogalates and zumba and found the instructors to be really nice. The population is mixed with young and old with different skill levels. The environment is not pretentious at all but rather fun and relaxed. This is a contrast to the yoga-fanatics that I am used to in Downtown Vancouver. You do need to pay for parking if you do not have a longer term membership. It is $1 per hour or $10 for the day. If you are planning on taking a class, you need to get a token at the front desk. I think they just use it to keep track of people. Do be aware of the cancellation policies if you are considering a longer term membership. They have increased their cancellation fees recently and a few friends were not aware.

Exorbitant membership rates. They rope you into a year contract and penalize you if you try to leave. Is that the only reason they have customers coming in? Or perhaps it's the status of simply being able to afford it and being seen at the Oval. Tried it out for one session, and I have to say that the atmosphere was strangely stiffling. It was like being in an HD Nike commercial with a bunch of people "casually" standing around in unnatural poses to show off their gymrat physiques. Most of them weren't even working out, just leaning on machines sipping goddamn juice as they discreetly flex their arms in the process, hips and chests not-so-subtly thrusted out, and legs bent in that affected blogger stance. Look, how much difference is there between gym machines really? Why pay their ridiculous rates out of your nose to parade around in Lululemons without breaking a sweat?

It is a beautiful building. All "Green" and stuff. The best is for public use. =)

Dear Olympic Oval, I'm not sure how I entirely feel about you. For one during your construction, you've obstructed one of the vital roads that allows many Richmondites the ability to quickly get from one end of Richmond to the core. On the other hand you will be hosting grand Olympic ice events so near by. How cool is that? You're going to be the friend that becomes a celebrity. Cool because you're in our backyard and so accessible, but at the same time annoying as hell because now there's going to be a shit load of people around here. Your rink is super fun and thanks for letting us skate it for relatively cheap before all the super athletes hit the ice and make us look like snails.

I've played hockey here a few times and I like it, the rink I think is olympic size and is really wide...lots of skating, also lot's of room behind the net which I like. This rink from the dressing rooms to the ice itself is very hot for some reason, maybe the lights in the rink, dunno but I don't mind cuz you sweat more and the beer always tastes better after the game. They also have a gym and basketball courts and other stuff, can't really comment on that since I"ve only played in the rink. The only downside is it's a little difficult to find if you haven't been here before and the pay parking.

I agree that this gym is turned into a gong show of rude people who drop weights constantly and staff not caring. I understand dropping weights doing heavy deadlifts but dropping 30lb dumbells is ridiculous. I find a few of the night staff working the front desk and floor of the weight room rude and unhelpful. Some of them are really nice but there is this one guy walks around with an indifferent attitude and has his little clique of buddies. The equipment is great and all but I had one encounter with a staff member where he aggressively looked at me like he wanted to fight me. The clientele and the staff are seriously the most self absorbed group of people I have ever worked out with.

This is my review for the GET SKILLED summer camps. (First year I have enrolled them.) I paid over $500 for 3 hour camp for 4 kids 12 yr old twins 8 yr old and 5 yr old with hopes that they will use the facilities during their time with the group. Also encourage my sister to enroll their kids in the same camp. I received confirmation email aug 4th with detailed activities for the day. Kids red the itinerary and we're excited. First day kids came home and told me they didn't follow the schedule. 8yr twins told me they didn't play soccer or skittle.they had a large group of 41 kids. 12 year old told me they played badminton but didn't play croquet and played dodgeball with the younger kids group of 41 as their group had consisted of about 12 kids. Second day (Wednesday) both 8yr group and 12 year old went to the park together. Large group of over 50 kids. 50 kids played catch the flag (yes one flag) while 3 leaders played football on the side and did not invite any of the kids to play. Once they got back to the oval leaders said "no more time for another activity time to go home" Kids came home and noticed they were attacked my mosquitos the the park! My year old nephew bitten over 20 times. Upon speaking to my kids they told me they were bored all day and sat the entire day. No California kick ball, frisbee, kick the can (as per schedule for 8 yr olds) Older kids did not go to the ubc boathouse, scavenger hunt or Intro to pickleball. I decided to speak up and called and left a message for Loren the camp program manager that late evening. I got his voicemail left a message about my concerns and to call me back. Thursday 1pm still haven't received a call so I spoke to the program leader of the older group. I told him kids did not do much yesterday and wanted to do rock climbing, volleyball and other sports and not sit all day. He mentioned yesterday was a park day and they could do rock climbing "I did it in the morning but I guess we can do it again" I told him well my kids haven't done it and it's on the activities for the day. Later that day when I picked up my kids they were upset at me as they told me I embarrassed them. Leader kept asking them what they wanted to do and when all 50 kids where sitting down and called out my nephew and said if it was alright they played Gaga. Sorry but my kids felt picked on and did not enjoy it. I do understand if the activities were changed due to weather but everything was changed from the list sent to me a week ago. 12 year old group had one leader. 8yr group had three I don't understand why they were combined camps. My 12 year old expected ultimate frisbee, beach volleyball as per the course description when we signed up. My 5 year old had a great time she said. First day they did badminton second day she went on a bouncy castle and trampoline and asked my why there was no badminton in a badminton class....

You have to pay for parking now? sheesh. No wonder I only came once and that's it. There's no apeal to this place at the moment, I'll wait till they finally figure things out here.

I play and do some volunteer work here. Reasons to visit: the building is immense and beautiful. The staff are nice, fit and easy going. There are some drawbacks... Put aside the fact that you have to pay for parking. It's a gated system where you line up getting in and out. When it's busy or when everyone is leaving at the end of the night - TRAFFIC JAM. It used to be just a drive in parking lot where you purchase a ticket after you park, what was wrong with that? If they don't pay, give em a ticket. Also it's flat out pricey to play here. Hockey fees are well above average and the single elevator to get up to the rinks... suck. The hockey changing rooms are squishy at best. Nice place to play court sports (vball, basketball, badmintin, etc), but my last place for ice hockey.

What a stunning building! I was thrilled to have been invited to do a presentation at the Oval as it gave me an excuse to stop by. Tons of covered parking. It's massive from the outside and so-so looking, but the inside is stunning. It's much more open and airy than the Calgary Oval and the pine beetle wood that they used for the roof is great - I love the design. Everything is very clean and open in design... loved the way the machines are set up to view the oval rink. and there are some smaller rooms with open ceilings to work out in or take classes. We used the Legacy Room for the event and it's a great location with floor to ceiling windows that allows for a great view of the oval... it's going to be a spectacular spot for whichever delegates get hosted there during the Olympics! The only downside is the catering... from my understanding, any events here require catering to be brought in. Food was so-so and nothing to write home about, but service is reasonable from the company used. That being said, no one is coming here for the food. Definitely a great spot if you want to impress if you're hosting a company event or just enjoy a nice play to work out!

I'm an annual member here. I'm here 3-4 times in the evenings. It's almost like my second home. Annual membership fees aren't cheap but it's well worth the price. What you get with your membership: -free lockers -free parking -free drop-in classes -free rock climbing (equipment rental is extra) -free batting cage session (Tues only) -free public skating The equipment and machines are top notch. It can get quite busy on weekday evenings, especially on days when there's an event. If possible, it's best to come during off peak times (i.e. weekend mornings). From time to time, they have a monthly "challenge" promo. If you come for X number of times during a certain period you get free oval schwag. Awesome eh?

Richmond Oval has been a huge part of my life journey. The staffs have always been nice and supportive. They have 6 full courts for basketball training. A running track to do sprints. And a gym with all the equipments to improve your strength, explosiveness, conditioning, mobility. Whatever your goals are, they very likely got it to support them. If you live in Richmond, you gotta come in at least get a one week FREE PASS to experience this place.

How did I forget to review this months ago? I love the architecture of the Oval. So sleek. and inside is just as incredible, and I think a great addition to recreational centers in general. I was surprised how big the skating oval is... those speed skaters must be really fast - my first lap (and first time in skates in 15 year, insisting on figure skates and not "boy skates" even though I fall over the toe pick) took like 10 minutes, I did get faster as I went. In the middle there is normal surface for basketball and volleyball. Very cool! My last company hosted an event there, and it was a huge success - and very cool that events are offered Our attendance was record for our events, and attendees were really excited about it. And it's kind of surreal to skate on the Olympic ice!

W T F ??? Well actually, there WON'T be any public long track speed skating now that the Olympics are over. They're remodeling to turn it into an all-purpose sports center. Let's just rename the place the Richmond Olympic No Longer An Oval. I'm stopping short of giving it 1 star because I'm sure it'll be a cool place... for short track. http://richmondoval.ca/docs/richmond_olympic_oval_legacy_conversion_march_3_2010.pdf

Magnificent building with great facilities, clean and modern. But you pay a premium for an Olympic facility. We came here to go ice skating. It wasn't quite what I expected, but all together nice. Instead of the ice rink you saw in the olympics, they have only two international size rinks. The ice skating was like most other hockey size rinks, just double the price. Parking was $1/ hr. You need to buy a ticket from a machine on the other side of the lot (a big lot), walk back, and put it on your dash. Admission to skate is $13. Skate rentals is $3. Public skate times are also limited. It was 11:30-2:30 when we went. It wasn't busy, so that was nice. A good one time experience...

Did a drop in TRX factor class at the Richmond Oval. Great session. Instructor was really keen on making sure everyone knew what to do and how to do it safety. she was good at making sure the beginners knew how to adjust their straps and showed 3 different positions (one for beginners, the regular way and then an extra hard way if you want to really work it). So far, have done a few classes at Urban Fitness.. as I said in my previous review.. just not the place for me.. not really keen on the "type" of bootcamp TRX they offer there.. a bit militant... Heard that Yyoga is going to soon be offering TRX at their south granville location. as that's close to my hood, can't wait to try it out there. already love their yoga sessions and pilates classes.. just such a great chill and encouraging environment. ok.. time to take a shower .. great class and I would recommend the TRX factor class at the Richmond oval to anyone.. all ages.. they even had some seniors there ! love it. only bad is you have to pay for parking..and its a bit further from home.. but definitely worth it if you want to learn how to do TRX safely.

Love the new parking machines now...just drive in to get a ticket and pay later. Before, you had to guestimate how many hours you needed and pay first---only to run out to add more time. Sometimes our hockey games would go longer, and it was mad scramble to get changed and skip the shower.lol It's about time someone's thinking.

I've only been there not even a handful of times, but both times, I've come away extremely underwhelmed. The place just really isn't that exciting to me. It's nice on the outside but once you get inside, something about it just turns me off. I just don't think it's very inviting, that's it. Like if you were just starting to work out and get fit, I, personally, would not start out here. But maybe that's just my opinion. The first time I went there, I had no idea that it was pay parking and I luckily had enough money with me to get out. I was really mad about that, actually. I couldn't imagine what would've happened if I hadn't. I find the staff there to be extremely unhelpful. I've asked questions about events going on there and in my mind, if you're in the reception area (if you can call it that?) you should know what's going on. But I just got a dirty look (you've been standing around picking your nails for the past five minutes - I was waiting for a friend so I watched - , you ain't even busy!!!!!!) and a quip to "check the website." Alrighty then. Meh.

well didn't know this has became a gym and a museum, big gift shop, I was there when they host the winter olympic at 2009...

I'm here at least three times a week working out. I haven't gotten to the climbing wall yet, but it's on my list of things to do! I'm a full-fledged member, so I get unlimed drop-ins, and with the longer hours, it works around my schedule! It's a bit pricey, but worth it, all things considered. It's always cool in the buildng as well, so working out is a lot easier. Plus all the machines are new! It's a very modernized place to work out. It's always buzzing with people, but not in a crowded way.

Too expensive for me, not going to give it a bad review because I'm not a seasoned gym guy. For the size of the place you'd think they'd have some basic gymnastic equipment there or at least a standalone pullup bar. I'm not too keen on why there is such a drastic price change for those over 26.

This place is fun and all that stuff, but some instructors are douche bags.... Pls hire his ppl thank u

*From the perspective of an American tourist* "Oh yeah I go to this gym called the Oval to work out," my friend told me indifferently. WAIT WHAT?! This is an Olympic gym?! Wow amazing. My friend downplayed this place like crazy. For $50/month membership, it's not too shabby. It was ~$15 for a guest day pass and the facilities including the lockers are unlimited use for the day. (Fun Fact: If you register your guest online beforehand like a week prior, you can get them in for free!) I came for the ice skating on a Friday night. I should've come earlier because the ice was all nasty already. I had hoped they would Zamboni'd the ice but they didn't until it closed :( The ice skating rink is quite big and they actually have two (? or more) rinks for hockey and that was really neat. My friend gave me a quick tour of the facilities afterwards and they even have a those indoor archery/baseball cages! Tons of basketball courts for all those Richmond folks and I'm thoroughly jealous. Maybe I haven't been to that many gyms, but this gym was so clean and pretty. This gym really gives you a sense of grandeur and it sucks we don't have a gym like this back home. If this place had a pool...I'm moving to Richmond...just to work out here.

You want a gym with a view the Oval is where it's at. The number of courts and sports that will be up and running this fall there makes any community centre in the world tiny by comparison. I hate the fact the Bread Garden that has the franchise hasn't opened their cafe yet, what early adopters are not worth it? Other chains would be on it and open now, hell there are 100 construction worker who need caffeine.

I mean the facilities there are really good and the coach for the classes are professional. But the staffs there are really not professional. It is my very first time to oval. The staff asked me how often I will go there, I said I am not sure after this month I will still go there. And I asked how about the parking fee? she said " EVERYONE NEEDS TO PAY" so I didn't get any information about long-term membership which is free parking, free cancelation. I was told by my friends this. I am not the one cannot pay the parking and 20 dollars more for a short-term membership. But I have the right to know all the options. And they still called me and said it was all my fault that I didn't read the agreement and signed it. I mean WTF. well....I don't have anything to say any more. THE HIGH PRICE THE BAD SERVICE. NOT FAIR.

Locker rooms are clean + free lockers which is great. I love how YYoga is now located here as well. It can get pretty busy here, so I so recommend to go during "odd" hours just to avoid the crowd. Staffs are also very friendly and helpful!

I have always wanted to check this out since it was built. The ladies at the front desk were really nice and sweet. Good impression. This place is overwhelming if u don't know where to go. But i love community gyms because they are usually open spaces. I get claustrophobic when i work out. So the gym is on the 3rd level but lockers on first. And they provide locks for u. The cardio machines face the basketball courts and hockey rink. So it gives u something to look at while running or what not. THe weight lift area was alright and enough room to have personal space. The only thing is that the benches weren't bolted down. And the hard wood floors are some what slippery so maybe a few sticky mats would be helpful so your feet don't slip underneath you on the smith machine. had a great workout here. The parking was suppose to be Dollar an hr but i was here on Saturday and i was longer...so who knows. But as for a drop in price $16. So thats a good price because u actually get a day pass and come in and out. If i was to do drop ins at another gym i know its more. So..Its too rich for my blood. But out of any gyms in Richmond i would definitely get a yearly pass. I just wished the running track was a tad bigger.

i feel like the only person who isn't a fan of this place, lol. i don't think it's a particularly nice place to be. it can be challenging to get to if you're new to the area, and staff i've encountered are absolutely no help whatsoever. i asked one woman where to get a pass for an event i was shooting and she stared at me like i was an alien. you're at the front desk, you should know these things or be able to find out if need be. i've been here a few times (mostly for photography reasons) but i usually feel very uncomfortable in there. when it first opened i thought of working out there, but i really couldn't afford it. it's a huge money grab, i feel. if i wanted too, i could easily go play basketball at a school for free. something about this place doesn't sit well with me.

Great facilities! I came here to ice skate. It was so clean and spacious. The oval has been transformed into a gym after the 2010 games, and I hear they have an eclectic selection of glasses members can partake.

This place is absolutely beautiful. My kids had a "Toddler, Roll and Rumble" birthday party here a few months ago and it was a big hit. The contact person wasn't very helpful. She insisted that we ordered our party food from Bread Garden and told us that we couldn't see the place without her. Problem was, it was hard to coordinate with her schedule. We decided to drop-in to see if we could take a look by ourselves, and luckily for us, the contact person wasn't working, so another staff took us up to see the party area. We also asked about the food and she told us that we only had to order from Bread Garden if we wanted to serve sandwiches and stuff. So, in the end, we didn't have to order from them cuz we wanted to serve asian food. The party itself was great. The team lead who entertained the kids was awesome and did an excellent job. Kinda pricey, but well worth it.

Happy to see the Oval improve on the variety of sports facilities, especially they now offer Gracie Brazilian Jijitsu! Evan the black belt instructor is personable and easy to understand. I can now devote more time to learning this new art and not have to travel out to Vancouver! The only thing is that it would be nice to see more friendly staff at the front desk of the Oval.

Great building with decent parking (both paid and street). Good to see tax dollars at work in a good way. Play volleyball through Urban Rec and it is a good facility for that.

This place it beautiful. It can be kinda expensive for drop-in, but they do sometimes offer great monthly/yearly specials. I love the fact that they offer drop-in, that way out of town guests/family can come with me, while the kids can skate

Absolubtely LOVE it, especially now that you can play badminton there and they are open til 11pm weekdays! I love their machines there, as you can plug in your earphones and selection your channel on all their machines, I don't feel like I am wasting time when I work out now =)

I used to come here for the gym because the equipment and facility was awesome. The sports facility was a wonderful bonus. I stopped after a few months because of personal reasons. Recently, I went back with GF in hopes of working out again. At $100/month for 2 membership, it was a pretty decent value. However, with the new $150 cancellation fee, it has forced us to consider the one-month membership instead which was $125/month for 2 memberships. Because of that cancellation policy, they have lost me as a customer but it is still a wonderful place for people that wants to consider a gym for 2+ years.

well... I didnt like their gym at all.... feel it doesnt look like a real gym some how.... I went for cycling class in there.... somehow maybe the mic was loud enough... couldnt hear their instructions.. also.... whe you done you need to put your bike back.... I didnt like thqt idea..