AN OLYMPIC gold medallist will visit Swindon tomorrow to open a new Aldi store in Rodbourne.

Heather Stanning won gold for Team GB in the women’s coxless pair rowing event at London 2012 and competed in Rio 2016.

She will cut the ribbon to declare the store officially open at 8am.

Heather said: “I can’t wait to visit Swindon and chat to some excited shoppers. Aldi makes it so easy for Team GB athletes to stock up on healthy, fresh foods through the vouchers it provides us with.

“As an athlete, I know the importance of a healthy, balanced diet and having access to fresh produce. Aldi’s range of fresh fruit and veg is so affordable it makes it easy to whip up tasty, nutritious meals.”

The first 30 shoppers through the door will receive a free bag of Aldi’s Super 6 range of fruit and veg from Heather herself.

Store manager Charlene Woodward said: “We’re delighted that Heather will be hosting our grand opening celebrations.

“No doubt this will be a brilliant start for the Swindon store and we can’t wait to meet local shoppers over the coming weeks and months.”

The new shop on Rodbourne Road will have a huge 1,254spm of retail space and provide 27 new jobs. Its opening hours will be from 8am to 10pm from Monday to Saturday, and from 10am to 4pm on Sundays.

The area has had issues with traffic congestion

The Rodbourne supermarket is not the only new Aldi in the pipeline for the Swindon area.

Plans for a Highworth branch of the supermarket to be built on the Blackworth Industrial Estate have faced a bumpy road to approval.

After significant support from Highworth Town Council, the plans were given the thumbs-up by Swindon Borough Council in June.

However, the Midcounties Cooperative - which is currently Highworth’s only supermarket - has since submitted a legal challenge to the approval.

The Co-op has argued that the committee considered “irrelevant” claims when granting the Aldi planning permission, including the suggestion that a new food shop would not have an adverse impact on Highworth’s high street, and the retailer also complained that Coun Vera Tomlinson hadn’t read the application before she voted to approve it.

The Highworth Aldi application has been sent back to the borough council’s planning committee, which is expected to discuss the Co-op’s appeal at its next meeting on November 13 at 6pm, as this month’s planning meeting was cancelled.