Chesterfield's 'Magnificent Seven' receive Talented Athlete Fund bursaries
Seven sporting stars from Chesterfield have had their talents recognised, with a cash boost of £300 each.
High jumper Ben Mourbey, golfer Jake Harrison, squash player Ashley Davies and table tennis competitors Liam Pitchford, Lucy Davidson, Sean Cullen and Daniel Lowe have all been presented with bursaries from the Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund.
The Fund has been set up thanks to contributions from a number of partners, including Chesterfield Borough Council, Derbyshire County Council and Derbyshire County Cricket Club.
All the other local authorities in the county, as well as a number of local businesses (listed below), have also contributed to the Fund, which is being managed by Derbyshire Sport.
In its first year it will support around 75 performers from across the county who are competing for England or Great Britain or have the potential to do so within 18 months.
Chesterfield’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ are among the first 18 Derbyshire athletes chosen to receive a bursary from the Fund, and each were presented with a £300 cheque.
Cllr Keith Morgan, Chesterfield Borough Council Lead Member Healthy Communities and Leisure, co-presented the cheque, along with Sports Development Officer Scott Webster, Clive Moesby, chair of Derbyshire Sport, and Derbyshire County Cricket Club player Stephen Stubbings.
Stephen has been awarded a benefit year by Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 2008 after more than a decade of fine service to the club.
Events will take place throughout the year to raise donations for his fund, with more details due to be posted on www.derbyshireccc.com
About the athletes:
- Liam Pitchford is currently ranked No.2 in the English Table Tennis Association (ETTA) national ranking list at Cadet level (under 15). The 14-year-old finished in ninth place in the Cadet boys section of the European Top 10 Youth event in Sheffield which took place on January 25 to 27. Earlier in January he travelled to Beijing for training, and took part in a press conference with Prime Minister Gordon Brown to promote the Olympics. He also played in his first ITTF World U18 Tour event in Germany where he got to the last 32 of the individual event and last 8 in the team event.
- Daniel Lowe, (14), is currently No.3 in England at Cadet level, and is National doubles champion with Liam Pitchford. Daniel is also British schools international team and individual champion for under 14s. He played for England in the Slovak Open in Bratislava in November 2007 and the Portugal Youth Championship in December 2007 and has been on training camps in Spain and Saudi Arabia.
- Sean Cullen is also 14 years old and is currently No.4 in England (Cadets). He reached the finals of the National cadet competition and the National under 14 competition, and during 2007 he played for England in the Cadet six nations competition, the European Youth Open and the French Open.
- 13-year-old Lucy Davidson is currently ranked No.6 at Cadet level, and was U13 Derbyshire School Champion 2007. She has represented her country in France and Sweden and is hoping to add to this this season. She is a member of the British Table Tennis Federation observation group London 2012.
- Squash player Ashley Davies, (13), finished 9th overall in his 2nd British Junior Open in Sheffield in January – his last tournament in the under-13 age group. He is now being mentored by Sheffield’s Nick Matthew, World No.5 in the men's rankings and, now he is 13, has had his National sponsorship contract with French racket manufacturer Tecnifibre, upgraded to a full International one. His achievements in 2007 included winning a place in the National Squad, and finishing 2nd in the England Squash National Rankings and No.5 in Europe.
- 19-year-old high jumper Ben Mourbey enjoyed his best athletics season to date in 2007. The season saw him specialise in the high jump for the first time, having trained and competed in combined events for a number of years. In June 2007 he jumped in the Derbyshire Schools Championships, winning the event with a personal best and setting a Derbyshire Schools record of 2.10m, and in July he won the silver medal at the English Schools Championship. At the end of the season he was selected to jump for the North of England in the U20 and U23 Home International events, and finished second in each.
- Golfer Jake Harrison, (15), is the Derbyshire Union of Golf Clubs (DUGC) U16 junior captain. He was sixth in the English Golf Union (EGU) U14 Reid International Trophy in 2006, which gave him exemption to play in the EGU U16 McGregor Trophy in 2007, and he had a total of 160 in this international competition. He is part of a regional squad of only six players who were selected in 2007 for EGU coaching.
In addition to Chesterfield Borough Council and Derbyshire County Council, other contributers to the fund are North East Derbyshire District Council, South Derbyshire District Council, Derby City Council, High Peak Borough Council, Amber Valley Borough Council, Bolsover District Council, Erewash Borough Council and Derbyshire Dales District Council.
East Midlands Airport, the University of Derby, Rolls-Royce, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Lorson International, Derby College, Spirita, Fairgrove Group, East Midlands Development Agency, the Electrical Contractors Association and Derbyshire Building Society have also shown their support financially.
Bursaries will be used to help athletes further their sporting careers, contributing towards meeting training costs such as coaching fees, travel and equipment.