Easterhouse teen weightlifter wins Commonwealth youth gold - with no funding

A teenage weightlifter from one of Glasgow's most deprived areas has won a Commonwealth Youth Championships gold medal - despite a complete lack of funding.

17-year-old Danny Richardson from the Gladiator Weightlifting Club in Easterhouse came out on top in the 94kg category at last week's contest on the Gold Coast in Australia.

However, Danny's win - as well as the bronze medal success of his teammate Emily McKibbon - comes at a cost.

Weightlifting is not recognised as a fundable sport by national agency sportscotland, and as such, the club has to cover all of its own expenses, running into thousands of pounds.

In a statement, sportscotland added that although they can assist individuals, "there are currently no athletes deemed to be of podium potential in Scotland."

Danny - wearing his gold medal from the Gold Coast - strongly disagrees.

Speaking to Clyde News, he said: "Basically, I was told that I had a chance to go to the Commonwealths but I had to self-fund. The club generously put on some fundraisers, and my mum literally walked over burning coals to get me some money.

"The rest I had to raise myself through my wages - and that's the same for Emily too.

"It makes me feel sad that if it wasn't for me working full-time - if I was studying at university or college - this wouldn't have happened. I wouldn't have even spoken about getting a medal.

"But I won't let big factors like funding stop me achieving what I want to get."

Danny's gold medal is the culmination of years of hard work and thousands of hours of training.

Speaking of his win, he said: "I felt really good in the warm-up area, and after speaking to my coach I decided to come in at heavier weights than I would usually, and it paid off.

"It was neck-and-neck the whole way between me and my main rival, but when I got my final clean & jerk lift at 140kg, that nailed me the gold."

Due to the total lack of funding, friends and family from the club had to raise £5,000 to cover flights, accommodation and expenses for Danny and Emily to compete Down Under.

The duo are just the latest in a long line of international-level athletes from the Gladiator Weightlifting Club in Easterhouse, which Danny's father Alex Richardson has been running since the 1980s - initially as a way to get kids off the streets and into the gym.

Alex told Clyde News: "The club's got a 37-year track record at international level. Previously we'd won six bronzes, but for Daniel and Emily to come back with a gold and a bronze, that's by far the club's best achievement at a Commonwealth level.

"It's a great success rate coming from one of the most deprived areas of Western Europe."

Alex has appeared at committees at the Scottish Parliament in recent years to argue for the funding of youngsters in sport in the country's poorest regions.

Sadly, it's a pledge he says he's yet to see delivered.

He said: "Due to the false 2014 Commonwealth Games legacy that was promised to the young people of Scotland, and due to sportscotland failing to uphold their Equal Opportunities in Sport policies - and failing in the duty of care for athletes from deprived areas like Easterhouse - the whole community has had to come together to fund this.

"We even had mothers and grandmothers walking on burning coals to raise the funds to allow Danny and Emily the opportunity to take their talents to the top level.

"This isn't about governance. This is about giving youngsters from poor areas the same opportunities as those from well-off areas. But they don't care."

In a statement, a sportscotland spokesperson said: “Weightlifting Scotland were derecognised as the Scottish Governing Body (SGB) for weightlifting following a Recognition Review process in April 2016.

"Recognition is a requirement for SGBs to be considered for investment from sportscotland.

"There were serious concerns over the governance of Weightlifting Scotland and divisions within the sport itself leading to the derecognition, which is why there is currently no public investment going into the governing body.

“Where there is not a recognised SGB, sportscotland can instead work with a recognised UK governing body to identify and support Scottish athletes with podium potential.

"However, there are currently no athletes deemed to be of podium potential in Scotland."

Despite sportscotland not viewing Danny as a viable prospect, Team Scotland's Twitter feed were quick to celebrate his gold medal and new Scottish record.

On the subject of sportscotland not deeming his club's athletes to be 'podium potential' - despite their Gold Coast success - Alex said: "They're talking about Olympic-level competitors. This is the farce we have here.

"Nobody from Easterhouse can afford to be a top Olympian.

"75 percent of Olympians come from middle to upper-class families, and in any given Olympic year very few come from a working-class background.

"Any Olympian in most sports - just like these kids - they're training and being developed from 10 years old, through to 20, 24 years of age before they reach that level. We don't just walk out on the street and find someone who's podium.

"There's no money for sports development work."

The next challenge for the Gladiator club is the European Youth Championships, taking place in Kosovo this weekend.