Berwick sportspeople encouraged to ask for support from the Borders' Athlete Support Programme

The Borders’ Athlete Support Programme (ASP) was launched in 2007 and has since contributed more than £250,000 in funding across a range of areas, from paying medical and physio bills to securing gym access and specialist coaching, and helping athletes with transport costs to reach national and international training and competition.

Funding was cut in recent years, however, council leader and former international athlete Euan Jardine has helped to champion a restoration of the programme’s funding and while it is, initially, about £21,000, ASP co-ordinator Neil Renton explained how even this relatively low amount is hugely valuable to a range of athletes.

“One of the challenges of living in the Borders is of course our rurality,” he said.

“This can mean we don’t have the world-class facilities or we have to travel quite a bit to access that, and to compete with our peers across Scotland and the UK.

“So, sometimes just being able to help an athlete and their family cope with travel costs, or get the physio they need to recover, can be the difference between them going to the next level in their sport or quitting it altogether.”

Athletes from more than 20 sports have been supported. It tends to be individual sports that are supported, rather than the more mainstream football, rugby and hockey. However, athletes from those sports have all benefited from past support, including Sarah Robertson, the current Scotland hockey captain, who competed in the past two Olympic Games.

“In sports like athletics or swimming, it’s quite straightforward,” explained Renton.

“An athlete can hit certain times that put them into an obvious higher level, and become comparable with national and international peers.

“It’s more challenging to judge where a footballer or rugby player might be on a pathway towards international levels, and those sports also have their own support networks.

“But, that doesn’t mean we don’t try. We have supported a lot of athletes from football, rugby and hockey and from everything from athletics, swimming and cycling to archery and orienteering – we are open to anyone to apply for support.”

Rick Kenney has been chair of the Borders’ ASP since its launch. He said: “We are one of the few local authority areas that have funded the performance element of sport, and I’m delighted that SBC see the value in that because it has widespread benefits for our region.

“We have a good number of up-and-coming athletes in the Borders, across many different sports, who need extra support and advice, from the training and coaching to newer elements like drug-testing, but it is also invaluable to local coaches.”

He added: “But this is about more than just the individual athletes; it’s about investing in our future, and our health and wellbeing in the Borders.”

Renton concluded: “The key is that there is a lot of local knowledge that has underpinned the development of the Scottish Borders as a rich sporting region, but we don’t want to lose that.

“We have done very well for a small region, but we can always do better.”

For more information on the ASP, and to apply for support, contact Neil Renton at: [email protected].