26 young athletes from Epsom and Ewell have been awarded financial and training grants from the GLL Sport Foundation.

The successful applicants were announced at a VIP event held at the Rainbow Leisure Centre in Epsom on Thursday 11th November and received their awards from Councillor Clive Woodbridge, Chairman of Epsom & Ewell's Leisure Committee and Peter Bundey, Chair of the GLL Sport Foundation.

They were supported at the event by Alexandra Rickham, GB international athlete and World Sailing Champion, who is funded as an ambassador for the Foundation. The sponsored athletes compete across 14 Olympic, Paralympic and Deaf Sport disciplines; ranging from athletics and speed skating to deaf squash and para-equestrian.

Each has benefited from funding of up to £1,250 to be spent on training, travel, support services and equipment.

One to watch is 24 year old Jamie Mathews, he is the world number one deaf squash player and in October this year further emphasised his elite international status by winning the World Deaf Squash Championship in New Zealand.

Jamie identifies his goals for 2011 and 2012 are "To reach a top world ranking of 150 in the able bodied professional circuit, whilst also defending his World Deaf Squash title.

"I also want to continue to promote sporting opportunities to young deaf children, the support of the Council and the Foundation will help both my world sporting ambitions and wider community engagement."

The Council and the Foundation focus large emphasis on ensuring young emerging talent is supported, the athletes gain access to more than 70 sports facilities management by GLL across London and the South East enabling them to reach their sporting pathway to excellence.

Cllr Woodbridge stated: "We may be a fairly small borough, but we are big on talent, and it was great to see these young people, who all live in Epsom and Ewell, aiming high in their chosen sports. I am very proud of their achievements so far and am grateful for the support of the council's leisure partner, GLL through the GLL Sport Foundation in helping them reach their goals."

After presenting the awards, Peter Bundey spent time with the athletes discussing their individual aspirations and funding needs: "It is always refreshing to meet these young athletes to understand how they use our support and how we can tailor support in the future. As always, I am thoroughly impressed with their achievements and we will actively promote the positive influence they have on their communities and peers. It is clear that funding and training support remains highly influential to the development of young talent and we are doing our level best to help this where we can."

The Patron of the Foundation is sporting superstar Sally Gunnell, who has always remained keen to assist young talent development. Sally has given expert guidance to ensure that the Foundation's support is of maximum benefit to the athletes.

Peter Bundey is quick to acknowledge Sally Gunnell's influence: "Having Sally as our Patron gives us great confidence that the support we give will always be athlete focused and meet real development needs."