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More gifted athletes presented with bursaries from Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund

28 July 2008

Among them are South Derbyshire’s Katrina Maciver (Ten Pin Bowling), Derby’s Rema Lascelles (Basketball), Amber Valley’s Ryan Hewitt (Motorsport), and Derbyshire golfer Craig Young.

The four athletes each collected a £300 cheque during a presentation at Moorways Sports Centre Stadium on Friday, July 25.

The Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund was set up to help promising sports performers from Derby and Derbyshire make the most of their talent, and a number of local authorities, businesses and other organisations have contributed.

Co-presenting the cheques was representatives from some of the funding partners - Derby City Council Councillor Ruth Skelton, Cabinet Member for Adult Services & Health; South Derbyshire District Council Councillor John Lemmon, Chairman of South Derbyshire Strategic Sports Group; Derbyshire County Cricket Club Chairman Don Amott; Keith Loring, head of sport and business consultancy Lorson International;Leonie Parkin, Community Relations Executive at East Midlands Airport, and Mike Umphray, Project Manager-Community Sport, at Spirita.

Amber Valley’s Alice Sharp (Hockey) and Derby’s Gabby Bates (Freestyle Kayaking) and Katy Jones (Sailing) are also each to receive £300 bursaries, but were unable to attend Friday’s presentation.

More about each of the athletes is below. They are among 76 sports performers from across Derbyshire supported by the Fund, all of whom are competing for England or Great Britain or have the potential to do so within 18 months.

AmberValley

Alice Sharp (Hockey)

15-year-old Alice, from Duffield, plays for the Belper Ladies first team in the National League North, and was part of the Belper U18 team which won the England Hockey National Club Cup Finals in May. She has also already played 11 matches for the England U16 team (five as Vice captain), and has been selected to represent England U16 girls at the European Youth Nations Championships at The Hague in Holland in July. She has also been invited to attend an U18 England Selection camp in August.

Ryan Hewitt (Motorsport)

During his first season as a rookie 12-year-old Ryan, from Heanor, gained 2nd place in Formula 6. He was also placed 2nd in the South East Championships representing England, and won the East Anglia Winter Championships. This enabled him to move into the Super 1 Elite series this season, and he hopes to achieve a top three ranking. He also hopes to compete in the ABKC ‘O’ Plate in Kent in September, bettering last year’s 7th place, and in the London Cup in October, when he hopes to improve on last year’s 6th place.

Derby

Rema Lascelles (Basketball)

15-year-old Rema, from Oakwood, is a member of the Derby Trailblazers U16 and U18 team. He represented England U16s in an international tournament in Majorca in April, and in Austria in May 2008. He is a part of the current England U16 squad that is training towards the 2008 European Championships in August.

He played for the Midlands regional team in 2007 and East Midlands in 2006 and 2005.

Gabby Bates (Freestyle Kayaking)

15-year-old Gabby, from Mickleover, is part of the GB junior ladies kayak team. She will compete in the European Championships in Spain in July, and in the European Cup in Switzerland in August. She will also compete at the British Championships in Nottingham in September.

Katy Jones (Sailing)

Katy, (17), from Allestree, teamed up with 2005 World Champion Ross Kearney in the Mirror class last year, and had success with a 2nd place in the UK National Championships. Katy and Ross also competed at this year’s Mirror National Championships in May, taking second place again. They will also compete at the 2008 European Championships in August. In addition, Katy was a winner at the 2007 Welsh Nationals and Southern Area Championships.

Derbyshire

Craig Young (Golf)

Craig, (16), won the Derbyshire Boys Championship, the Derbyshire Boys Matchplay and the Derbyshire Boys Order of Merit in 2007. He also came second in the Midland Golf Union’s U16 Champion of Champions. He has since graduated to play for the County 2nd Team as well as Derbyshire Boys. He will also compete in the McGregor Championship in July.

South Derbyshire

Katrina Maciver (Ten Pin Bowling)

17-year-old Katrina, from Swadlincote, has represented England in both UK and European tournaments, including the European Youth Championships in Greece in 2007. Her goals for the next 12 months include qualifying for the England U18 Triple Crown Team, which will compete against Scotland, Ireland and Wales in August.

The Fund, managed by Derbyshire Sport, was officially launched in December 2007 and since then 76 recipients have been selected.

Applications for 2008 have now closed. The process for 2009 applications is expected to begin in September.

The following local authorities have financially supported the Talented Athlete Fund: Derbyshire County Council, South Derbyshire District Council, North East Derbyshire District Council, Derby City Council, High Peak Borough Council, Amber Valley Borough Council, Bolsover District Council, Erewash Borough Council, Chesterfield Borough Council and Derbyshire Dales District Council.

A number of local companies have also contributed, including Derbyshire Building Society, Derby College, Derbyshire County Cricket Club, Lorson International, East Midlands Airport, Electrical Contractors Association, Fairgrove Group, Spirita, East Midlands Development Agency, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Rolls-Royce and the University of Derby.