{"id":8252,"date":"2021-08-12T10:33:38","date_gmt":"2021-08-12T10:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.reading.ac.uk\/connected\/?p=8252"},"modified":"2021-08-12T10:36:16","modified_gmt":"2021-08-12T10:36:16","slug":"sporting-excellence-scholarship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.reading.ac.uk\/connected\/2021\/08\/12\/sporting-excellence-scholarship\/","title":{"rendered":"Sporting Excellence Scholarship"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Sporting Excellence Scholarship<\/a> is helping student athletes to stay fit throughout lockdown, and is preparing them to compete again after a challenging year for sport.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics having just finished, CONNECTED takes a look at how University donors are supporting the sports stars of the future, by providing grants to students who compete at a national or international level in their sport.<\/p>\n

Over the last year, the scholars have faced more disruptions to their training and competitions than ever before. The scholarship has been a lifeline for many students who would have otherwise struggled to maintain their fitness, or been unable to afford the equipment needed, to continue competing at such a high level.<\/p>\n

At-home training<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"Abigail Goddard, Freestyle Kayaking World Champion and first-year undergraduate bioscience<\/a> student, speaks to CONNECTED about how the scholarship has helped her to stay fit whilst out of the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have always loved the water. I grew up watching my dad paddle on white-water rafting trips and I started canoeing as soon as I was old enough. I began freestyle kayaking because I loved the freedom of the water and the rush of tumbling \u2013 it was exhilarating. By the time I was 18, I had kayaked all over Europe \u2013 from Spain to Scotland, and France to Bratislava,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cWhen it came to picking universities, I knew I had to find somewhere that could balance my educational and sporting needs. Reading has a great bioscience programme and a strong water sporting community being so close to the River Thames. It was a great choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Abigail started her degree in September 2020, when COVID-19 had already impacted the international sporting world. During each national lockdown, Abigail was unable to get out on the water and couldn\u2019t meet with her trainer in person.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cI didn\u2019t know about the scholarship until I had already started, but when I found out I was eligible, it was a huge relief. The scholarship allowed me to join a specific training programme run by World Champion Freestyle Kayaker, Jacko. He ran online training that we could do at home, without specialist equipment, to keep us fit and to ensure our muscle movements were improving despite being out of the water. I did a lot of somersaulting in my living room, but it really did help!<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cI was able to build my skill set and confidence at a time when my options were really limited. It is such a small sport and we don\u2019t get funding anywhere else, so the scholarship made a really big difference.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Balancing sport and study <\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"Harriet Brick, a first-year English literature<\/a> student, talks to CONNECTED about COVID-19\u2019s impact on the Team GB qualifiers, and how donor support has helped her through the lockdown.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sat on a horse before I could even walk,\u201d Harriet tells CONNECTED. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine not riding, it has been my whole life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew that going to university and balancing riding would be a challenge, but it was so important to me to have the opportunity to do both. I hadn\u2019t initially considered Reading, but my physiotherapist mentioned that her daughter studied here, and after a bit of research, I decided I could balance my education and sport well if I came here too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like Abigail, Harriet began university in September 2020 shortly before the UK entered another national lockdown. The early months of 2021 proved to be especially challenging as Harriet\u2019s opportunities to practice dwindled.<\/p>\n

\u201cI decided to remain on campus for the lockdown because I couldn\u2019t study from home. I did try, but the internet connection was awful and it wasn\u2019t an appropriate learning environment.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cMy horse, Ginger, is at home in Shropshire, so while I was staying in Reading I had to pay someone to maintain Ginger\u2019s care and upkeep for me \u2013 that\u2019s why the scholarship was so important.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

“Without Ginger, I can\u2019t train or compete and I wouldn\u2019t have been able to attend the qualifiers \u2013 which were already cancelled once due to COVID-19 \u2013 and I probably wouldn\u2019t have made it on to Team GB.<\/p>\n

\u201cGetting help with Ginger\u2019s care allowed me to look ahead and plan for Olympic level riding, but it also gave me the peace of mind I needed to focus on my studies without constantly worrying.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cI want to say a massive thank you to everyone who made this scholarship happen. It\u2019s extremely difficult to be an athlete and a student at the same time, and it is amazing that there are people out there who understand the challenges and want to support us through them.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Success stories <\/strong><\/h4>\n

The scholarship provides up to \u00a32,000 which can be used to help scholars with the costs of travel to trials, equipment, coaching, nutritional advice and other costs associated with competing in performance sport.<\/p>\n

But, the scholarship means so much more as Campaigns Project Officer, Janice Galvin, explains: \u201cIt is a chance to be part of a success story. We very much hope that some of the students who benefit from a scholarship will be names that you see and hear on television, and at the Olympics in the future.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cPeople who do exceptionally well at sport have the capacity to go beyond themselves; what they achieve can be for the greater good of others. In that respect the scholarship can generate a sense of civic pride, national pride, and pride for the wider University community.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

We are very grateful to everyone who has contributed to the sporting success of the scholars. Thank you.<\/p>\n

Find out more about the Sporting Excellence Scholarship<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Sporting Excellence Scholarship is helping student athletes to stay fit throughout lockdown, and is preparing them to compete again after a challenging year for sport.\u00a0 With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics having just finished, CONNECTED takes a look at how University donors are supporting the sports stars of the future, by providing grants to students […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":170,"featured_media":8264,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[102,85,22,82,132,88,94,62],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSporting Excellence Scholarship - Connected<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Sporting Excellence Scholarship is preparing student athletes to compete again after a challenging year for sport.\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sites.reading.ac.uk\/connected\/2021\/08\/12\/sporting-excellence-scholarship\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sporting Excellence Scholarship - 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