Trinity Sport has today announced 64 scholarships for 2017/18, down two from last year. Athletes spanning 18 sports have been selected. As part of the programme, they will be able to avail of individualised strength and conditioning coaching, nutritional advice, a purpose-built medical care pathway and financial support.
In a similar vein to last year, Dublin University Football Club (DUFC), Trinity’s rugby team, dominates the list, with 30 scholarships awarded to athletes representing the club. This is two up from last year, after the club ensured survival in Ireland’s top amateur league, with a dramatic last-gasp victory over Terenure in April. Among the scholars are Jack Kelly and Michael Silvester, both of whom represented Ireland in the World Rugby under-20 Championships in Georgia over the summer.
However, there is no space on the list for any members of DUFC Women’s Rugby, despite the side obtaining promotion to Division 3 of the Leinster League.
Seven scholarships have been awarded to Dublin University Ladies Hockey Club (DULHC), up from four last year, after the club obtained promotion to the EY Hockey League, the top-tier of Irish hockey. For the men’s hockey team, only captain Rory Nichols makes the list.
Elsewhere, athletes such as Tamaki Marumo (squash) and Ellen Ince (taekwondo), the latter recently having claimed two medals in the International Taekwondo Federation World Championships, retain their place. Lorcan Tucker, who has represented Ireland at cricket, also keeps his spot on the list.
Unlike last year, Dublin University Association Football Club (DUAFC) have a representative on the list in first-year BESS student James Woods.
Deputy Head of Sport and Recreation Matthew Dossett said in a press statement: “With a significant number of applications received, the task of selecting the final Trinity Sport scholars for 2017/18 was a very challenging process, and on behalf of Trinity Sport, I’d like to thank everyone who took the time to apply. This has been the highest level of interest the programme has ever received, and underlines the further enhancements made to the services, support, experitse [sic], and facilities, which are tailored to those on a high performance pathway.”
Dossett extended his gratitude to sponsors Bank of Ireland, describing their support as “central to the delivery of the scholarships”.
An event to celebrate this year’s scholars will be held on November 27th in the Exam Hall.
Correction: 11:30, October 27th, 2017
The headline of earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that there were 68 sports scholars. In fact, there are 64. An earlier version of this article also stated that the number of scholarships for DUFC was up one from last year. In fact, it has increased by two.
