On the rink of success
Mundell wishes Team GB curlers good luck ahead of Sochi.
David Mundell with the TeamGB winter olympic curling team.
Scotland Office Minister David Mundell has spoken of the source of pride and inspiration our Olympians provides for the whole country ahead of the Winter Olympics which begin in Sochi, Russia next week.
Ahead of the games the Minister met with Team GB’s men’s and women’s curling teams at their training camp in Stirling today.
UK Sport has provided direct funding to eight winter sports programmes that will compete in the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games. This funding, totalling over £14 million, is supporting bobsleigh, curling, figure skating, short track speed skating, skeleton, ski and snowboard, disability skiing and wheelchair curling.
A number of staff based at the sportscotland Institute of Sport are also travelling to Russia to support the British team, with physiotherapists, doctors and a psychologist helping the athletes prepare for the events.
Mr Mundell said:
We have a great history of success in curling over the past few years. Both our men’s and women’s teams have been sources of pride and inspiration for the whole country, it was a great pleasure to meet the teams today and I wish them all the best in Sochi
There are 18 Scots representing Team GB this time round almost a third of the entire team. I know each and every one of them will give everything they can and represent Team GB with pride in Sochi and will hopefully be a source of inspiration for future winter Olympians.
UK Government funding through UK sport currently benefits over 100 Scottish athletes and since 1997 UK Sport has invested around £100m of Lottery and Exchequer funds in Britain’s best Olympic and Paralympic competitors each year. Curling itself has just been awarded over £2m from UK Sport and with the fantastic support they have received from both UK Sport and sportscotland I know Scotland’s two Government’s are fully committed to giving our curlers representing Team GB the best possible chance of success in Sochi.