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Olympians Urge Yorkshire Coast Rising Sports Stars to Apply for Talent Scheme

Up-and-coming athletes on the North Yorkshire Coast are being given the chance to take their sporting careers to the next level with Everyone Active's Sporting Champions scheme.

Relaunching this month for the ninth consecutive year, the renowned programme empowers aspiring athletes to achieve their full potential through access to state-of-the-art training facilities and invaluable mentoring support from Olympians and Paralympians.

Since its inception in 2016, the scheme has elevated the sporting careers of more than 6,000 athletes by providing them with free access to Everyone Active's 240-plus leisure centres nationwide, including Scarborough Sports Village, Whitby Leisure Centre, Pindar Leisure Centre, Ryedale Swim and Fitness Centre, Ryedale Sports Centre and Derwent Swim and Fitness Centre, run in partnership with North Yorkshire Council.

A local athlete who has benefited from the scheme is swimmer Aaron Gilson, who trains at Scarborough Sports Village. 

In the past year, the 25-year-old has won three medals at the Luxembourg Open, including gold in the 50m breaststroke, as well as competing in the Scottish National Championships and the Swim England County and Regional Championships.

Aaron said: 

“The scheme has been incredibly valuable. Having access to early morning and evening swimming sessions, as well as gym training, has been essential for my development. The support network of elite athletes and coaches from various sports has also been fantastic.”

Olympic silver medallist and former world record holder Colin Jackson will return as the scheme’s Ambassador for 2025-2026.

He will work alongside a line-up of inspiring Elite athletes who have starred on the Olympic and Paralympic stage – Lauren Steadman, Lutalo Muhammad, Richard Kilty, Maisie Summers-Newton and Harry Aikines-Aryeetey – in mentoring sessions throughout the year. 

These sporting heroes will offer wisdom, guidance and expert advice, guiding rising athletes through every milestone of their sporting journeys.
Last summer, the scheme supported 26 Sporting Champions who competed in the Paris Olympics and Paralympics, achieving nine gold, six silver and eight bronze medals. An incredible 14 of these athletes made their debuts at Paris 2024, coming home with 11 medals between them.

Colin Jackson said: 

"After a summer of monumental success in 2024, I am more excited than ever to support athletes of all ages and from all disciplines to achieve their dreams. I'm passionate about nurturing young talent and the Sporting Champions scheme goes above and beyond in this mission.”

Over the past eight years, the Sporting Champions scheme has poured more than £2million into young athletes, proving its commitment to grassroots sporting excellence.

Peter Smith, Everyone Active’s contract manager, said: 

"We are delighted to support up-and-coming athletes from North Yorkshire on their journey to success.

“As a leisure provider working in partnership with North Yorkshire Council, we feel it is important to cater for all sections of the community to ensure all budding athletes have access to the same facilities and opportunities.

“The Sporting Champions scheme has supported thousands of athletes over the years, and we are proud to be continuing this again in 2025. We hope to continue making a real difference to our athletes’ success.”

Applications are open and run until Tuesday 11 March 2025 via the Everyone Active Sporting Champions website: https://easportingchampions.com
 

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