Young GB Winter Athlete Awarded Scholarship
8th February 2021
Last modified on May 20th, 2021
An 18-year-old British bobsleigh athlete has been accepted on a mentoring programme thanks to funding from a sponsor of The Ellie Soutter Foundation.
Éire Rowland-Evans, who is based in Swansea, has been accepted onto The True Athlete Project’s Global Athlete Mentoring Programme.
The programme pairs Olympic, Paralympic and other elite senior athletes with aspiring juniors to work together over a year.
The aim is to give the juniors someone to talk to about any challenges they are facing, in sport or in life.
Éire’s scholarship to the programme came about through a private donor to the foundation set up by Tony Soutter in memory of his daughter, Ellie.
The talented snowboarder took her life on her 18th birthday in July 2018.
Ellie Soutter – photo TESF
The Ellie Soutter Foundation supports young winter sport athletes with money, mental health awareness and a full mind and body package.
“I am so thankful to have been given such an amazing opportunity to help me showcase and develop my skills in order to grow as an athlete, by learning from some of the best athlete mentors in the world. I can’t wait to get started!” Éire said
Éire achieved a world ranking of 20 and hopes to represent GB at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina.
She was accepted for the programme partly on the strength of her volunteering.
She helped to raise £50,000 for Gloucestershire Young Carers and supporting children with special needs.
Éire has been paired with current senior Wales hockey goalkeeper, Rose Thomas.
She has 73 caps for Wales, has competed at a Commonwealth Games, and was the FIH Hockey World League Best Goalkeeper in 2016.
“I am thrilled to be partnering with such a talented and driven athlete,” Rose said.
“After a challenging year, it is more important than ever that athletes have mental health and well-being support.
“The TAP programme is a safe space to share their experiences and develop their skills to become a better person and athlete. I am looking forward to providing 100% support to Éire as we work through this holistic programme.”
