A gym boss who faced a £10,000 fine for keeping his gym open during lockdown avoids paying after the council's case against him collapsed.
Alex Lowndes refused to close his Gainz Fitness & Strength in Bedford during the second lockdown in November 2020.
The case brought by Bedford Borough Council collapsed but a spokesperson said it had acted in the public interest.
At the time in England, sports venues could only open under limited circumstances, which includes the training of elite athletes.
Mr Lowndes said he felt gyms should have remained open.
He told the BBC : "It became clear it was an airborne disease, you're more prone to it if you're unhealthy, overweight, etc, and gyms contributed a very small amount to the spread of the virus.
"From a mental health point of view, gyms are really important, people depend on them, and I think people underestimate that.
"[Contesting the case] was based on principle. We should never have shut in the first place and we stand by what we did at the time."
Mr Lowndes also said it was "ludicrous" to continue to prosecute people for exercising after details of the "partygate" gatherings in Westminster emerged.
In November 2020, the gym was raided and Mr Lowndes was charged with a breach of lockdown regulations, which he denied.
He faced the eye-watering £10,000 fine and was due to stand trial in March.
The council's case collapsed when it failed to gather enough evidence and their request for an adjournment was rejected.
London-based criminal defence lawyer Lucinda Nicholls told the BBC she had successfully represented similar cases.
She said: "The biggest issue is enforcement of the legislation - the law hasn't been followed, but councils and prosecutors doggedly insist on proceeding, it makes no sense.
"We've been in scenarios where costs have just added and added, and we've written to the local authority saying, 'Why are you doing this?' This is completely unnecessary'."
A Borough Council spokesperson told The Mirror: “During the COVID-19 pandemic, Government regulations were introduced to keep us all safe and slow the spread of the virus. These included gyms being closed for periods of the pandemic.
“Bedford Borough Council enforced these regulations in line with its duty under the Health Protection ( Coronavirus, restrictions) (England) (no.4) Regulations 2020 in place at the time. We brought this case because there was ample and sufficient evidence for a successful prosecution following the non-payment of a fixed penalty notice and because it was in the public interest to prosecute, and the Judge stated that they found no fault with how the Council brought the prosecution.
“It is important that we remember that the threat posed by the virus then was very different to that which we face now - the pandemic isn’t over but the combination of immunity from prior infection, vaccinations and antivirals for those at highest risk have made it possible for us to return cautiously to the activities that we love.
“This case was not won or lost by either party as a result of a trial; it was withdrawn due to difficulties around a third party disclosure; something entirely out of the Council’s hands.”
