The Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center in Shinden, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, closed on March 31, 2026.
I seem to remember it being commonly called the “heated pool” when I was an elementary school student in the 1980s. I had used it many times, and in recent years I had visited the facility with my children.
Hoping to preserve at least a little of its history, I visited on March 30, the day before it closed.
Here is a photo-focused look at the Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center.
The information presented here is current as of the article’s publication in April 2026. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What is the Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center?
The Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center was a Japan Swimming Federation-certified indoor heated pool facility in Shinden, Kurashiki City, that could be used year-round.
It had the following facilities:
- 50-meter pool: 8 lanes (certified by the Japan Swimming Federation)
- 25-meter pool: 7 lanes (certified by the Japan Swimming Federation)
- Children’s pool
- Training room, seminar room, spectator seating, and more
It was generally operated as a municipal pool. With affordable admission per visit—220 yen for adults, 160 yen for junior and senior high school students, and 110 yen for children aged 3 through elementary school—it was especially busy during the summer.
Many pools operate only in summer, but one of the Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center’s attractions was that it could be used year-round.
History of the facility
The Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center opened in 1981 as the Okayama Prefecture Kurashiki General Indoor Swimming Center.
The facility received its greatest attention when it hosted the Japanese national team selection trials for swimming at the Seoul Olympics in June 1988.
Daichi Suzuki, a member of the House of Councillors (as of 2026), won the men’s 100-meter backstroke after setting a new Japanese record, then went on to win a gold medal at the Seoul Olympics.
In 2007, it was transferred from Okayama Prefecture to Kurashiki City, where it remained until its closure.
In recent years, it was used for swimming competitions hosted by Okayama Prefecture, Kurashiki City, and others, as well as for pre-tournament training camps for the Japan women’s national water polo team (Tokyo 2020 Olympics and the World Aquatics Championships (Fukuoka 2023)).
However, around 2020, 40 years after it opened, signs of deterioration became noticeable.
In addition to the facility’s consistently hot and humid indoor environment, the use of chlorine for water quality management and other factors reportedly caused concrete to bulge and crack, paint to peel, and steel frames to rust. Repairs were made to address the damage.
From fiscal 2022 onward, major roof leaks also began to occur. Emergency waterproofing repairs were carried out in July 2023, but the repairs were expected to last only about two years. It was therefore decided that the facility would close on March 31, 2026, and it closed as scheduled.
Photos of the Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center
Now, let’s look back at the atmosphere of the Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center through photos from its heyday.
Exterior
Inside
Pool
Photography is normally prohibited in the pool area.
We were granted permission to take photographs this time.
Messages
Many messages from users had been collected ahead of the closure.
From the Writer
I knew it was closing at the end of March, but I only learned on March 29 that it would be the end of March 2026. I hurried over for a visit.
The Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center is a facility full of memories, one I visited many times as a child and that took good care of me. I was never particularly good at swimming, but I was happy when I became able to swim in the 50-meter pool on my own (because it is deep, children are subject to height and swimming ability restrictions) and swim 50 meters.
Later, after living in other cities and towns, it was when I was a university student that I learned that it is rare for a city to have a 50-meter pool that can also be used for competitions. That was when I first realized how fortunate I had been.
Several decades have passed since then, and when I visited with my child, what surprised me was how much more run-down it was than I had expected. I thought equipment renovations would somehow extend its life, but the damage must have been too severe to be fixed through renovations.
It is sad to see it close, but a new indoor pool is already under construction in Mizushima Ryokuchi Fukuda Park. It is expected to be completed during fiscal 2027 and open for use in summer 2027.
It seems a new indoor pool will be completed in the not-too-distant future, so I look forward to it.
Kurashiki Architecture Travelogue: Archive
Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center Information
| Name | Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center |
|---|---|
| Address | 2458 Shinden, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | None, as it has closed |
| Website | Kurashiki City Indoor Swimming Center |
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