MARLOW Rowing Club’s Ben Simon has been awarded £1,000 by SportsAid’s Bucks' Sporting Lunch Club. Created in 2011, the club is a way for local individuals, businesses and trusts - who want to support young, talented athletes in Buckinghamshire - to raise money to help with training, travel or equipment costs.

The 17-year-old from Princes Risborough will use his donation towards upgrading his equipment and travelling to the many international rowing competitions he competes in every year.

His commitment to the sport impressed SportsAid trustees particularly with his training regime beginning at 4.30am every morning and devoting both Saturday and Sunday mornings to the sport.

Ben’s ultimate aim is to compete in the Olympics and cites James Cracknell as his sporting hero, and is also grateful to his mother, who is his greatest influence since she takes him to training and competitions.

The teenager was unable to attend the lunch since he is currently in the USA competing in the Head of the Charles Regatta.  But he left a message for guests saying: “I just want to say a massive thank you to SportsAid and the Bucks Sporting lunch club. The money that I received allowed me to go to the Coupe de la Jeunesse in Poland this summer, where I won two gold medals in the quad for Team GB’s rowing team."

Headline speaker at the lunch club was Adrian Moorhouse, who won a gold medal in the 100m breaststroke at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. Adrian is a former SportsAid alumni.