Oxfordshire's top athletes were celebrated at awards events last week.
The county's sporting stars gathered for GLL's Sport Foundation awards, marking a year of sporting achievements.
The events took place on consecutive evenings at two locations - the Beacon Theatre in Wantage and Carterton Leisure Centre.
On Wednesday, June 26, more than 100 people came together to recognise sporting excellence across South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse.
In total, 86 sportspeople from the two regions, representing sports ranging from trampolining to wheelchair motocross, will receive £54,000 in funding.
Medals and certificates were presented by Gary Starkey, GLL’s head of service, and Kate Mulrey, community sport manager.
All athletes also left with a goodie bag of different sporting items.
Erin Kennedy, a Paralympic gold medallist in rowing, and Elizabeth Ryan, a modern pentathlon GB development athlete, shared their experiences and advice during a Q&A session.
Ms Ryan is a longstanding GLL's Sport Foundation athlete, having been on the scheme since 2018, whereas Ms Kennedy joined last year.
Attendees got the chance to take a photo with Ms Kennedy's Tokyo gold medal after the event.
Meanwhile, at Carterton Leisure Centre on Thursday, June 27, the venue was transformed into a Hollywood-style auditorium – complete with stage, lighting, a professional singer and canapes.
The event celebrated 51 West Oxfordshire athletes set to receive this year's GLL's Sport Foundation funding totalling £30,000.
This also covers a variety of sports, including triathlon, tag rugby and trampolining as well as less common sports such as bowls and synchronised swimming.
Medals and certificates were presented by Julian Sayers, deputy lieutenant for Oxfordshire, while Josh Lenthall, CEO of Active Oxfordshire, and Mr Starkey were also among the guests.
Kate Sweatman, a GBR Equipped powerlifter and the 2023 World Open Equipped champion, spoke to the 70 people in attendance.
Ms Sweatman, who moved from rugby to powerlifting, discussed the balance between her family commitments and her sporting ambitions while stressing the importance of perseverance.
Guests were kept entertained by a musical duo and a magician who moved between tables performing tricks.
Athletes signed the GLL's Sport Foundation t-shirt which will be framed and kept as a piece of memorabilia.
The GLL's Sport Foundation is managed by charitable social enterprise GLL and is now in its 16th year.
The scheme continues to grow on a national level with 28,146 athlete awards inclusive of 117 different sports.
The total support value is £15,386,230, which would not be possible without its sponsors and key partners including national governing bodies, Sports Aid and additional athlete services.
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