Grants Continue The Olympic Legacy For Young Londoners

Fresh from her double gold at the World Track Cycling Championships in Colombia, London 2012 gold medallist Joanna Rowsell has returned to the scene of her greatest triumph to help inspire a new generation. 



On 7^th March, as part of the 2014 London Youth Games Sport Development Grants co-funded by Capital’s Help a Capital Child and Balfour Beatty, Joanna presented a cheque for £2,000 to Active Newham, which will go towards paying for weekly coached cycling training sessions at the Olympic Park. 



She took part in a Q&A with students from nearby Chobham Academy who will be able to take advantage of the scheme. The funds, which will also help develop kayaking and sailing, will enable Newham to enter and prepare teams for the 2014 Balfour Beatty London Youth Games, Europe’s largest annual youth sports event.

Joanna, who is Patron of the London Youth Games in 2014, said “It is really important that we maintain the momentum of London 2012 by ensuring young people have the opportunity to take part in competitive sport.

The Balfour Beatty Sports Development Grants with Capital’s Help a Capital Child are particularly effective at opening doors to young people to take part in less traditional sports such as BMX, judo and archery that they might not be exposed to at school. The grants enable young people to discover a new activity and discover something about themselves, leading to a lifetime of sporting participation.”

The award to Newham is one of 19 grants to London borough grass root projects totalling £45,000 which Help a Capital Child and Balfour Beatty are funding this year to develop sporting opportunities for over 3,000 disadvantaged young Londoners. From providing free taster sessions, professional coaching and equipment purchase in 20 sports, including several Paralympic sports, you can find out more about the latest awards here.