HUNDREDS of people were surprised to find Gold's Gym,swheresthey paid thousands of yuan every year to exercise, closed by the Jing'an District court on November 12 for failing to pay back large over 3 million yuan (US,882) in unpaid rent.

　　What made members even angrier was that the gym continued selling memberships even after it received notice to close from the court on October 10, the Shanghai Morning Post reported.

　　"I have nothing to say. It is a cheat," said one woman on condition of anonymity. She still had more than 6,000 yuan (US) of credit on her card. "With so many members, I can't see any reason why it had to close," she added.

　　The big yellow logo "Gold's Gym" is still shining, but no one can be found in the spacious gym except court personnel who are waiting for gym members to retrieve their belongings.

　　By November 16, only about 300 of the total 1,800 members had collected their possessions. Most of members still didn't know the gym had been closed down.

　　Gold's Gym arrived in Shanghai in September 2000, promoting itself as the largest chain of gymnasiums in the world. Founded in the US in 1965, Gold's Gym has over 600 outlets in 35 countries, according to the company's website. Located just beside the Shanghai Centre, the gym is also thought as the best in the city.

　　"I bought the membership card because Gold's Gym has a high reputation. I didn't imagine after just three years it would hit a financial crisis and show such indifference to its members!" one member told the local media.

　　Staff of the gym also complained that the enterprise owed them several months of salary. Gold's Gym has about 300 staff but some of them have not been paid for months.

　　The Shanghai Evening Post reported the monthly rent of the gym at US,000. But It had not paid any rent since March 2002, despite the urging of the Jiu'an Real Estate Company.