Five University of Stirling students will represent Great Britain at the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea.
The Games start on Friday (3 July) and are second only in size and scale to the Olympics – with more than 12,000 student athletes from 170 countries competing.
Stirling, Scotland’s University for Sporting Excellence, is well represented, with five students and summer 2015 graduates amongst the 67-strong GBR athlete delegation.
The golf team includes: Stirling Business and Sport student Gemma Batty and BSc Environmental Geography student Henry Tomlinson, as well as Hannah McCook, who graduated last week with a 2:1 in Sports Studies and 2013 Stirling alumnus Michael Howard.
Gemma, from Leeds, has enjoyed a stellar first season as a Stirling International Sports Scholarship Programme athlete – the pinnacle of which was being crowned the British Universities Strokeplay champion.
She said: “It’s basically the biggest event I have ever been selected to play in. I have never been asked to represent my country before, it’s unbelievable. I’ve had so many opportunities over the last 10 months since I came to Stirling.
“I can’t wait to experience the culture and play golf in a setting you can only dream of. It will be special to be around international athletes from other sports. I want to experience it all, but it’s important to relax and play my golf – we’ve as much right as anyone else to be there.”
In Swimming, London 2012 Olympic semi-finalist Craig Benson, studying Sport & Exercise Science, is joined by Stirling team-mate Cameron Brodie, who has just completed a BA Hons Sports Studies degree and will start a Sport Management postgraduate degree in September.
Cameron, a Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games silver medallist and current British 200m Butterfly champion, said: “The World University Games are a perfect opportunity for me to race against a world class field. To be able to race internationally, representing both the University and your country, it’s perfect.
“I've been racing the best in the world throughout Europe and I'm feeling ready to head out there. The competition is going to be of a very high standard with the US and Australia sending across big teams, so if I return with a medal it will be my biggest sporting achievement so far.”
British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) – the national governing body for Higher Education sport in the UK – has athletes representing Great Britain in 12 of the 21 sports being contested in South Korea : Archery; Badminton; Diving; Fencing; Gymnastics (Artistic); Gymnastics (Rhythmic); Golf; Shooting; Swimming; Table Tennis; Taekwondo and Tennis.
Stirling has a proud tradition of success at the World University Games, with the medal tally including Golds won by swimmer Andy Hunter and golfer Lesley MacKay.
Raleigh Gowrie, Sports Performance Manager at the University of Stirling said: “We are extremely proud of the athletes who have been selected for the World University Games and it is fantastic reward for their continued commitment to their sport and to their studies. We have an excellent record at Scotland’s University for Sporting Excellence in supporting students and helping to place them on the world sporting map.”
Follow the competition at: www.bucs.org.uk/gwangju
Media enquiries to: David Christie, Senior Communications Officer, on 01786 466653 or david.christie1@stir.ac.uk