PROSPECTIVE tennis star Rebecca Heaps was one of 12 youngsters to receive sports scholarship grants at a ceremony with gold medal winning Paralympian Stephanie Millward.
Awarded by Wiltshire Council as part of a Funding Future Olympians and Paralympians foundation, the £500 grants are intended to help the athletes with the cost of training, new equipment and travel.
Supported by local businesses through the successful annual Business and Sports Gala fundraising dinner, it has so far helped 34 young people with many young people going on to achieve national and in some cases international success in their chosen sport.
Deputy leader of the council John Thomson said: John Thomson said: “It was a real pleasure to meet these young people, all of whom are competing at a high level in their chosen sport, and I was delighted to present them with a grant.
“We know that these grants make a huge difference to the opportunities for our future sports stars, providing much-needed financial support for training, events and competitions.”
The funding is awarded to young people aged eight to 18, who compete at regional or national level in an Olympic or Paralympic sport, or a sport recognised by Sport England.
More than 220 business representatives will be at this year’s Business and Sports Gala fundraising dinner on March 15. This year is the fifth anniversary and hopes are high that it will beat last year’s total of £50,000.
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