Some 124 young sporting stars in Belfast have been awarded bursaries worth over £75,000 by social enterprise GLL to help them pursue their sporting ambitions.
At an awards ceremony in Belfast City Hall, some of the city’s most promising young talent received the bursaries in what is the 15th year of the GLL Sport Foundation awards.
Athletes included Commonwealth Gold and Olympic Bronze medalist Aidan Walsh who is currently ranked number one nationally, and eighth in the world.
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Other supported athletes include:
- Michaela Walsh – Boxing (World ranking no.4 / National ranking no.1)
- John Paul Hale – Boxing (World ranking no. 34 / National ranking no.1)
- Hannah McGugan – Squash (World ranking no.254 / National ranking no.2)
- Matthew Cheung – Badminton (National ranking no.1)
- Etta Choi Taekwondo
- Darius Roohi – Futsal
The GLL Sport Foundation (GSF) is the largest independent athlete support programme in the UK and supports gifted young athletes, many of whom rely on these bursaries alone to compete at national and international levels.
Local recipients in Belfast this year include 124 individuals, 74% of whom receive no other central funding towards their sporting journey and rely heavily on the support to meet the costs of competing. Of this, 60 recipients are aged under 21 while 25 are aged under 16.
Awarded in partnership with the Mary Peters Trust, athletes supported by the GSF this year received financial grants of up to £1,000 alongside training support, access to all GLL facilities including Better gyms and leisure centre membership. The access to cutting edge facilities and specialist equipment means the young athletes can meet their training commitments at some of the best gyms in the country.
The GSF is delivered in Belfast by GLL, the social enterprise which runs the 15 ‘Better’ leisure centres across the city. Since launching in Belfast in 2015, the GSF has provided over 773 awards worth over £500,000. Previous GSF supported athletes include Paralympian Michael McKillop, Irish Olympic marathon runner and winner of the 40th Belfast City Marathon 2022 Paul Pollock, and Irish Hockey International Shirley McCay.
In its 15 years, the GLL Sport Foundation (GSF) has been at the forefront of developing local young athletic talent with an impressive 25,000 awards totaling £14m having been made across the UK since 2008.
GSF supported Boxer and Olympic bronze medalist Aidan Walsh said: “The support provided by GLL in helping me pursue my dreams is something I will always be grateful for, and it has undoubtedly made a difference to me in my own career.
"Access to great training facilities makes a huge difference - having the right equipment and gyms to train in helps me and others to compete at a world-class level.
"The support I’ve received from GLL is invaluable, supporting me as a young boxer right through to winning bronze at the Olympics. I’ve no doubt there are lots of future Olympians who will be helped on their journey with this support.”
Regional Business Manager at GLL Jonathan Michael said: “There is nothing more rewarding to us than being able to support young athletes on every step of their sporting journeys and it is fantastic to be able to recognise their talent and reward their efforts.
"As well as being hugely talented, all of this year’s athletes demonstrate the highest commitment to their chosen sport, through the long, gruelling hours they train, to the achievements they make locally, nationally and internationally.
"These stories drive and inspire us, and they are an excellent example to other young people coming behind them.”
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