More than forty talented young athletes from across Bath and North East Somerset are to benefit from thousands of pounds of funding to support their sporting journey.
Athletes including Olympic Gold medallist Calum Jarvis will receive free memberships for sports venues and leisure centres, cash bursaries and other athlete services thanks to leisure charitable social enterprise GLL.
GLL manages centres across the area under the ‘Better’ brand, in partnership with Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Athletes will be supported through the GLL Sport Foundation, the largest independent athlete support programme in the UK, which in 2022 marks its 14th year of supporting both emerging and established national sporting talent.
With 87% of award recipients receiving no other sport funding and 56% of recipients being aged under 21, the GLL Sport Foundation (GSF) has highlighted a vital funding gap for young talented athletes and the need to tackle inequalities in sport.
Chosen athletes will share £111,000 of cash value awards as well as access to physiotherapy and introductory access to athlete services offered by the Foundation partner “Switch the Play”.
Peter Bundey, GSF Chair, paid tribute to the athletes, programme stakeholders and also highlighted the impact the GLL Sport Foundation is making to reduce inequalities across a wide range of sports.
He said: “These last 2 years since the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic have had an unprecedented impact across sport especially with younger emerging talent.
“For young talented athletes, restrictions of their training, travel and competitions appear to have impacted significantly.
“But these awards offer a welcome boost for athletes to continue the richly diverse sports they love and excel in – allowing us to reach deep into communities across the UK to remove barriers to participation.
“Since the Foundation began, we have now given nearly 20,000 athlete awards, totalling nearly £13million of support.
“I would like to give heartfelt thank all our sponsors, partners and supporters, who remain the lifeblood of this fantastic GLL initiative.
“I would also like to thank SportsAid for their continued partnership and the athletes who have continued to support us over the last two years and look forward to being with you for years to come.”
GSF Patron and former Olympic Champion Sally Gunnell explained the impact of GSF support on the next generation of athletes and the communities they live in.
She said: “Sport is such an important part of all our lives and has the power to inspire young people to excel and harness their talent towards their future.
“From my own experience starting out as a young athlete and progressing through my sport, I understand how important the recognition and support from organisations like the GLL Sport Foundation can be to a young athlete. It can make the difference in achieving sporting ambitions.
“This is ever-more important today as we recover from a difficult and challenging year, where dreams have been put on hold and sport had to stop.
“Athletes can now refocus and start competition and working towards those goals with the support of the GLL Sport Foundation.
“This support can positively impact communities by promoting the opportunity that sport can bring and promoting the benefits it brings in well-being from someone within that community.”
Award holders past and present have amassed an impressive 77 medals between them, including Tom Daley, Ellie Simmonds, Susie Rogers, Michael McKillop, Dina Asher-Smith and Charlotte Worthington.