DaveR
02-08-2008, 03:52 PM
http://www.sportfocus.com/newsimage/derbyshire_sport_cheque.jpg
Seven sporting stars from Chesterfield have had their talents recognised, with a cash boost of £300 each.
Four of the recipients are the 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 on Friday, February 1.
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 (http://www.derbyshireccc.com/).
About the athletes:
It has been a busy few months for table tennis player Liam Pitchford, who 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 this month 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. In November and December he competed in two European Cadet Open events in Slovakia and Portugal where he finished 3rd and 10th respectively.
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. He has been selected to play for England in the Safir International competition in Sweden next month.
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, and her goal this year is to move from the observation group to the talent ID group.
Further details of the Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund can be found at www.derbyshiresport.co.uk/news (http://www.derbyshiresport.co.uk/news)
Derbyshire Sport
Seven sporting stars from Chesterfield have had their talents recognised, with a cash boost of £300 each.
Four of the recipients are the 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 on Friday, February 1.
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 (http://www.derbyshireccc.com/).
About the athletes:
It has been a busy few months for table tennis player Liam Pitchford, who 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 this month 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. In November and December he competed in two European Cadet Open events in Slovakia and Portugal where he finished 3rd and 10th respectively.
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. He has been selected to play for England in the Safir International competition in Sweden next month.
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, and her goal this year is to move from the observation group to the talent ID group.
Further details of the Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund can be found at www.derbyshiresport.co.uk/news (http://www.derbyshiresport.co.uk/news)
Derbyshire Sport