A former Active Cheshire employee in training for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro is backing a project to offer support to the county’s future sporting heroes.
Warrington-born Johnathan Akinyemi (Johny) will compete for the Nigerian Olympic team in slalom canoeing.
As a boy he persuaded his parents to buy him a canoe as a reward for doing well in his exams, leading him to his passion for the sport.
After representing Great Britain at international level Johny switched to competing for a place in the Nigerian Olympic team - the birth place of his grandfather Samuel Emanuel Akinyemi - which he secured in November 2015 after winning the African championships.
Johny is now supporting the launch of the Active Cheshire Road to Rio elite athlete scholarship programme, offering young athletes the opportunity to apply for funding to support their training, purchase kit or cover travel expenses.
£3,000 of investment is available to support 12 rising stars with a one off grant of £250, boosting Cheshire’s future sporting heroes.
He said: “I know only too well the cost of training when aiming high within your sport. Travelling to Bala in north Wales to train on the manmade slalom course, for up to four hours in a day is certainly a costly business for me, so I’m delighted to be supporting the launch of this scholarship programme to support young people like me in their aim to succeed at their chosen sport.”
CEO of Active Cheshire Anne Boyd said: “We invest over £500,000 per annum in projects and interventions enabling people to get active and achieve great things within a sporting arena. We would welcome applications from young up-and-coming elite athletes from disadvantaged communities who would really benefit from a one-off payment of £250. It’s particularly appropriate in an Olympic year to be launching the ‘Road to Rio’ scholarship programme that invests in our young people of today, hopefully creating the future stars of tomorrow.”
To apply for the ‘Road to Rio’ elite athlete scholarship programme visit www.activecheshire.org to download an application form, or contact Active Cheshire for more information on 01606 330 212
