Five Scottish athletes have received additional financial support ahead of the Winter Olympics after being selected for sportscotland Athlete Personal Awards (SAPA).
Five athletes hoping to represent Team GB at Milan Cortina 2026 will share £30,000 of National Lottery investment to cover additional training, competition and living expenses.
This latest group of athletes includes figure skaters Luke Digby and Anastasia Vaipan-Law, who train at Dundee Ice Arena and receive extensive support from staff at the sportscotland institute of sport. The four-time British champions will compete at their first Winter Olympics at Milan Cortina, an excellent performance at the recent World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal.
Cross country skiers Andrew Young, James Clugnet and Andrew Musgrave have also received funding. James Clugnet is aiming for his second Olympic Games after competing in the team sprint at Beijing 2022.
Andrew Young and Andrew Musgrave have the chance to join an esteemed list of athletes to have competed at five Olympic Games, their Olympic debuts coming in Vancouver 2010.
The awards only make up a small part of the support the athletes receive as they prepare to compete on the biggest stage. They also benefit from a host of expert services provided by the sportscotland institute of sport which includes nutrition, physical preparation, physio, sports psychology, coaching and many more.
The latest round of funding means the SAPA programme has awarded over £2million of National Lottery funding to athletes since its inception for the Olympics and Paralympics in London in 2012. In that time £2,083,209 has been shared by over 300 high performance athletes and coaches aiming to make their mark in summer or winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, as well as the Commonwealth Games.
Director of sport at sportscotland, Craig Burn, said: “At sportscotland our goal is always to support athletes as much as we possibly can and help ensure they’re in a position to give full focus to their training and competitions. SAPAs are an important part of that strategy.
“The financial awards are only part of a wider package of support. The range of specialist services provided by the sportscotland institute of sport is key to helping athletes perform at their best as is the support of their families and sport governing bodies.
“We are proud to play a part in helping ensure Scotland’s athletes are ready to compete with the best at the very highest level.”
Luke Digby and Anastasia Vaipan-Law are fresh from a standout season which included their fourth British title in a row and a fifth-place finish at the European Championships in Tallinn, which was GBs best pairs finish in that event for over 30 years. The best was yet to come as their 12th place and best-ever World Championships display in Boston qualified them for a place on Team GB at Milan Cortina Winter Olympics next year, with final selections set to take place in December after the British Championships.
In the fifth year of their partnership, the pair’s performances are going from strength to strength as they get set for a season which could include their Olympic debut, under the guidance of coach Simon Briggs and sportscotland institute of sport staff who provide a range of support including physical preparation, nutrition, medical and physio.
Anastasia said: “Last season was huge for us. That moment we found out we’d qualified a quota spot for Great Britain at the Olympics was a dream come true. We’ve worked so hard throughout our entire partnership to achieve our Olympic dream and we are one step closer.”
Luke added: “Balancing other commitments with training and competitions is always difficult. In an Olympic year we know we have to do everything we possibly can in terms of our preparation and the SAPA funding from sportscotland is a huge help with that.
"It helps us give full focus to being the best we can be on the ice.”
The additional funding allows athletes to cut down working hours and reduce the worry of financing travel for training and competitive opportunities, enabling athletes to rest and recover properly after training and competition.
Scottish governing bodies of sport nominate athletes they believe could benefit from additional financial support to help them qualify for the Games, or to increase their chances of winning a medal.
