Three Canberra athletes are preparing for life after sport with the help of a share in more than $100,000 in AIS education scholarships.
Olympic bronze medalist Cameron Girdlestone, cross-country mountain biker Zoe Cuthbert and cross-country skier Seve De Campo are three of 37 Australian athletes selected for the program.
Girdlestone, who is studying a graduate diploma in property management, said the scholarship was extremely important to help him balance his rowing and study.
"[It] will allow me to focus on my education goals whilst also being able to commit to my training and competition requirements with a clear head and clear focus," he said.
"Throughout my sporting career I have valued the importance of balance and this support from the AIS allows me the opportunity to continue this into the coming new year."
A key feature this year is supporting athletes with education earlier in their high performance sporting careers, with more than 75 per cent of the recipients categorised as 'developing' or 'emerging'.
Australian National University students, De Campo and Cuthbert, are two of them.
Cuthbert recognises her sport is not sustainable long term but her passion for design was.
"My sport is a huge part of my life. When I train or compete, I am 100 percent focused on riding. I recognise this, alone, is not sustainable either in the short-term or as a lifestyle. Design, in all its forms but mostly graphic design, is also a huge part of my life that I get equal fulfillment from," she said.
"I currently study design at Australian National University in preparation for a career after cycling. The AIS Education Scholarship will substantially reduce my debt at the end of this study making it easier to eventually move from being an athlete into a sustainable career."
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Similarly Campo recognises the same thing. The 23-year-old is hoping to qualify for the Beijing Olympics 2022 and said in order to be happy, he had to be growing in all areas.
"Completing a bachelor's degree in Engineering and Commerce at the ANU both motivates me in sport as well as bringing positive future opportunities beyond sport," he said.
"I've always been interested in bioengineering and the possibilities of supporting human health and performance through studying and imaging genetics."
A second round will open in March, as the program has doubled from last year's inaugural program - offering $200,000 in scholarships for 2021-22 - thanks to support from the John and Myriam Wylie Foundation.
Mr Wylie said sport and education was a winning mix as every athlete had a game-plan in their sport, and the program was about helping more athletes to pursue education as part of their broader life plan.
"Every athlete receiving one of these grants has talents beyond the sporting arena, you just have to look at the breadth of education courses they're undertaking," he said.
"There's health education like paramedics, speech pathology, sonography and medicine, though to diverse areas such as science, commerce, design, engineering and so much more.
"Our message to athletes is sporting success doesn't have to be at the sacrifice of other ambitions, especially education and career pathways. If we can encourage more athletes to engage with education at the start of their sporting careers, we'll no doubt have more successful leaders emerging from sport and into their communities."
