FIVE rising Park Ridge High School stars of sport have received Federal government cash grants to help them on the way.
Year 12 student Layton Reid, 17, of Boronia Heights, helped the Australian Junior Steelers softball team to win a gold medal at the recent world championships in Canada. He is already planning his return trip to try out for league teams at year’s end.
“When you’re travelling to compete it all helps,” he said.
“You can spend a lot of money on uniforms, travel and accomodation.”
Others who won grants were Year 9 Aussie Rules players Kaleb Nolan, Dakota King, Monet Broughton-Ferris, and Jacinta Ens, all aged 14.
Park Ridge High, home to the Park Ridge Pirates, has an AFL school of excellence. All four teens recently competed on Park Ridge school rep teams at the Met West championships in Cairns.
The group won cash grants of $600 and $700 through the Federal government’s local sporting champions grant program.
Federal sports minister Senator Bridget McKenzie joined Forde MP Bert van Manen at Park Ridge High to present the cheques.
Senator McKenzie joked it made her glad to see Queensland kids with the right kind of football in their hands.
“I’m from Victoria where there’s only type of football,” she said.
Senator McKenzie invited the kids to go back to their coaches and the clubs where they played on weekends to find out what they needed and apply for it at ausport.gov.au.
She said the Federal government had recently rolled out $30 million in funding that would be pumped into sports clubs, which apply for up to $500,000 for improvements that included change rooms and lighting.
Forde MP Bert van Manen described it as a tremendous investment by the government in great young athetes.
“We have some talented young athletes here and competing nationally and internationally can be quite costly for mum and dad,” Mr van Manen said.
“The grants are a great way to help cover some of the costs of competing and help our rising sporting stars take on the best in the country and the world.”
