The Stellenbosch Athletics Bursary Programme is in search of 15 promising athletes from disadvantaged backgrounds to fund their 2022 high school education.
The Athletics Foundation Trust said it was launching the Stellenbosch Athletics Bursary Programme in partnership with Endurocad and Stellenbosch High School.
The programme will kick off in 2022 with the immediate goal to identify 15 talented athletes from grades 8 to 10 in 2022. The pupils must come from underdeveloped areas where there are few resources or opportunities to develop their athletic and academic abilities.
AFT national programme manager Rose Juby said: “These young athletes will achieve an all-round education by attending Stellenbosch High School and be trained by world-class coaches in Stellenbosch. No sports career lasts forever. We want young athletes to realise that not everyone is going to become a professional athlete, so education is viewed as equally important.”
AFT’s previous sponsorships of bursaries for TuksSport High School reaped rewards on the South African and World Athletics scene from 2014 to 2021 with phenomenal success at the recent World Under 20 Championships in Nairobi, Kenya.
Principal of Stellenbosch High School Theo Pellissier said: “We are very excited to host the inaugural group of athletes at our school. Stellenbosch High School is uniquely positioned for this initiative as it not only boasts the necessary amenities, it is also renowned for its welcoming culture and the personal touch. It has a long history of attracting learners from the furthest corners of the Western and the Northern Cape and beyond.”
Criteria
Athletes who wish to apply must fall within the following parameters:
Athletes (Grades 8 to 10 in 2022) from the greater Western Cape, northern Cape, southern Cape and Free State.
Schooling will be conducted in Afrikaans which is the medium of instruction at Stellenbosch High School.
The programme will focus on the following athletics disciplines:
- Sprints
- Middle distance
- Cross-country
- Pole vault
- Race walking
Bursary covers
- School fees
- Books and stationery
- School uniform
- Accommodation costs
- Athletics coaching
- Sport psychology
- Sport nutrition
- Sports science testing
Bursaries are awarded in three categories depending on overall household income – full, partial and sports bursaries. The awarding of bursaries takes into account factors including athletic potential, socio-economic circumstances, age, academic achievement and potential, attitudes, values and mental habits and means test.
Apply here
For further information e-mail: [email protected]