23 September 2020

GVC Supports 51 Young Athletes Through SportsAid Partnership

• The Group’s Pitching In investment programme will see GVC fund 51 SportsAid  athletes
• Sprinter, Ladbrokes colleague and Olympic hopeful Cheyanne Evans-Gray also receiving support

At the launch of SportsAid Week 2020 (21-27 September), GVC, the multi-national sports-betting and gaming group that owns Ladbrokes and Coral, is pleased to announce the 51 athletes it is supporting through its partnership with SportsAid, the charity dedicated to supporting aspiring British athletes with financial support, recognition and personal development.

GVC’s SportsAid partnership forms a keystone in its new Pitching In investment programme, which has been created to support and promote grassroots sport at a time when sporting organisations face unprecedented challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic. The programme was launched in early September with the announcement of the Pitching In Trident Leagues partnership, which will provide much needed financial support for nonleague football.

Now as part of Pitching In, GVC’s collaboration with SportsAid is continuing into its second year, with 51 further athletes set to benefit from the programme from all over the country. Among those receiving support are 10 athletes, five Para athletes, three hockey players, three rowers and three rugby union players as well as many more from other sports including boxing, wheelchair basketball and skiing.

Notable athletes to benefit from the collaboration include archer Eleanor Piper, rifle shooter Ruth Mwandumba, track and field star Joel Clarke-Khan, para table tennis player Craig Allen and wheelchair basketball talent Ross Davidson.

Cheyanne Evans-Gray is one of the atheletes benefitting from GVC’s support this year. The sprinter, who competes for Croydon Harriers and set a new British University and Colleges Sport (BUCS) Championships record over 60m this year, balances training with a job at one of GVC’s Ladbrokes betting shops in Croydon.

Cheyanne Evans-Gray said: “I feel overwhelmed and am really grateful for the support from Sports Aid. I’m in training to compete at The Olympics and hopefully win gold and this funding means that I can afford to fund more training and it will give me a helping hand in buying some new kit. The mentoring programme will mean so much to me too.”

When it signed the partnership with SportsAid GVC pledged to provide funding for the country’s young, talented athletes during the early stages of their careers. This funding goes towards the cost of training, equipment as well as giving the athletes access to expert advice and guidance on a range of topics including nutrition, time management, training and dealing with the media as part of the programme.

Grainne Hurst, GVC’s Group Director of Corporate Affairs commented: “We are really proud to be supporting the next generation of British sporting heroes through our Pitching In programme and see our partnership with SportsAid go from strength to strength. We’re thrilled that the funding is helping to provide opportunities for the nation’s brightest sporting talent, at a time when grassroots sport is under increasing financial strain.”

England footballing legend Stuart Pearce was recently signed up by GVC as their official Pitching In Ambassador added: “Grassroots sport is facing huge challenges at the moment and this funding will deliver vitally needed support to many young athletes as they seek to cope with the challenges posed by COVID-19. I have had the honour of managing the Great Britain team at the 2012 Olympics and anything that helps talented sportsmen and women to fulfil their potential and achieve their dreams is to be celebrated.”

Tim Lawler, SportsAid’s Chief Executive, said: “Confirming support for a new cohort of talented young athletes is always exciting and this continued commitment from GVC is very welcome news in these uncertain times. Recognising and encouraging the next generation to develop their potential has arguably never been more important, and we are thrilled to see our partnership with GVC going from strength to strength.”

Further details on the Pitching In partnership are available here: https://entaingroup.com/corporate-responsibility/sportsaid-partnership/

The 51 athletes being sponsored by GVC in 2020 are:

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About GVC Holdings PLC

GVC Holdings PLC (LSE:GVC) is a FTSE100 company and is one of the world’s largest sports-betting and gaming groups, operating both online and in the retail sector.  The Group owns a comprehensive portfolio of established brands; Sports Brands include bwin, Coral, Crystalbet, Eurobet, Ladbrokes, Neds and Sportingbet; Gaming Brands include CasinoClub, Foxy Bingo, Gala, Gioco Digitale, partypoker and PartyCasino. The Group owns proprietary technology across all of its core product verticals and in addition to its B2C operations provides services to a number of third-party customers on a B2B basis. The Group has also entered into a joint-venture with MGM Resorts to capitalise on the sports-betting and gaming opportunity in the US.  The Group is tax resident in the UK with licenses in more than 20 countries, across five continents.

For more information see the Group’s website: www.gvc-plc.com