The Scottish Handball Association (SHA), together with Oriam, Scotland’s sports performance center, has created a handball scholarship program at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh.
– This allows us to work together to support handball athletes, not only from Scotland, but from across the world, says Ross Campbell, Executive Director of Oriam.
In Scotland, handball is one of the fastest-growing sports, having seen a 500% increase in participants over the last two years. Now, the SHA wants to take the next step by launching a handboll scholarship program.
– We’re seeing very strong growth in handball at the grassroots level in Scotland. For the last couple of years, we’ve been focusing on developing pathways from there into the higher levels of the sport. This scholarship programme is the next natural step on that journey, explains Evan Hunter, excecutive director of Scottish handball.
According to a media release, the aim of the program is to attract handball players from around the world who can help boost Scotland’s status in the sport. The criteria for acceptance vary, but students who are selected will receive a range of support to help advance their handball careers.
The programme includes both handball and physical training. Students will also have access to recovery tools and sports psychology support. In addition, athletes will receive academic assistance through a ‘Lifestyle and Advocacy Co-ordinator’ who will help them balance sport and studies.
– The key aim of our scholarships is to help athletes perform both academically and in their chosen sport through access to our world-class facilities and Oriam’s performance staff. All of these factors make this programme an exciting opportunity for athletes to be part of, says Ross Campbell.