SSE organised for three Olympians to give the UK’s future sports stars a lesson in success.
Six time Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy joined diving silver medallist Leon Taylor and Paralympic sprinter Sally Brown at a two-day workshop mentoring some of the country’s brightest sporting prospects.
The SSE Next Generation programme is part of its sponsorship of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. It provides vital funding and support to 50 young athletes for the next four years, helping them go for glory.
Sir Chris Hoy welcomed the youngsters to the event in Loughborough telling them to grasp every opportunity and make the most of it.
He said: "It’s great SSE is getting behind future champions and not just looking for a quick fix but creating a genuine relationship, following their journey and taking pride in seeing all these young athletes develop right through to 2018, 2020 and beyond."
The SSE Next Generation athletes attended the workshop with their parents and coaches, receiving expert advice on nutrition, anti-doping, dealing with the media and using social media.
The youngsters, aged from 11-20, have been identified by SportsAid, as being our next crop of sports stars and future medallists. SSE’s intervention at this early stage in their careers helps them and their families overcome some of the financial challenges in reaching the top.
Training, travel to competition and buying vital equipment all adds up and SSE’s pledge of £1,000 every year for four years helps the sports stars focus on the hard work and takes some of the worries off their families.
Coupled with mentoring from Commonwealth and Olympic stars from each home nation and access to state-of-the-art facilities, SSE is playing its part in helping the youngsters fulfil their potential.
Lubjana Piovesana, is tipped to be a future judo Olympian in 2020. The 17-year-old, from Sutton Coldfield, said the funding is already providing dividends.
She said: "The financial support really helps me as it means I can go to the European Cup in Portugal in April and I don't think I would have been able to go otherwise.
"It was great to meet so many athletes from different sports and learn about what they're doing. My favourite session was probably the nutrition workshop as it will help me improve my diet going forward."
Wendy Barbour, SSE Director of Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and Sponsorship said: "I had the pleasure of spending two days with our SSE Next Generation Athletes at the workshop, and it was remarkable. Seeing first hand the difference we are making made me immensely proud of SSE and our company wide commitment to helping these young inspirational athletes fulfil their ambitions."