FIVE Queanbeyan high school sports prodigies have won scholarships to progress and develop their skills under the South East Regional Academy of Sport over the next six to 12 months.
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ACT state representatives Eligh Unwin (hockey), Daniel Arroyo (athletics), and Kathryn and Ryan Martin (squash) were all successful recently in their applications for scholarships, and will now receive full training and support from the academy, which is based at various facilities in Canberra.
Water polo player Natalie Taylor was awarded an individual scholarship, and while she will not receive coaching from the academy, she was awarded a grant to continue her development in the sport with her own coaches.
Hockey player Unwin represented the ACT under 14s side at this year's nationals, and has been awarded for his achievements there, while Taylor represented the ACT in water polo.
Sprinter Arroyo is set to represent his school at the national schools athletics championships in Sydney on October 9-12, and will receive special coaching to prepare for that, and the Martin siblings prepared for the junior squash nationals in Perth, which was held this week.
The athletics and squash programs will be completed by February next year, while those in hockey and water polo, which are new to the academy, will be ongoing through next year.
SERAS executive director Gary Lane said each young athlete had earned their scholarships by representing their state.
"They've all been through their training camps where they get their physiological tests done for their sports, and they then get a strength and conditioning program which they work on in their own time," Lane said.
"They also get an education component, like workshops in public speaking, sports psychology, exercise physiology, and other types of initiatives to increase their knowledge of sport an what it's like to be an elite athlete."
Lane added the idea of the scholarships was to prepare the young athletes for elitism in the future in their respective sports.
Queanbeyan mayor Tim Overall was on hand to congratulate the five juniors on their scholarships, and said he hoped to one day see them in the Queanbeyan Sports Hall of Fame.