Hughes Insurance has announced that Anjali Singh, a 14-year-old table tennis player from South Belfast, is the second athlete to have been awarded a £500 bursary as part of its renewed partnership with the Mary Peters Trust. The £5,000 bursary programme, which is now in its second year, will award funding to ten young athletes from across Northern Ireland throughout 2022.
Mary Peters Trust
Each of the ten athletes will be selected by Lady Mary and her Trust to receive a £500 bursary from Hughes Insurance to support them on their journey and realise their sporting potential.
Lady Mary Peters said: “I am delighted to embark on this partnership with Hughes Insurance for a second year. Last year, our bursary programme successfully supported 10 pre-elite athletes on their sporting journeys, and we hope that our 2022 programme will do the same.
“Anjali is a very worthy recipient. Her sporting prowess is evident from her many achievements, which include being ranked best under 13 player by Table Tennis Ireland in 2019. I hope that this bursary will stand her in good stead as she prepares to take part in this year’s UK Table Tennis Tournaments.”
Anjali has achieved numerous wins for playing table tennis. In addition to being ranked best under 13 player by Table Tennis Ireland, she formed part of a winning team that took part in the 2019 Six Nations Primary Schools Championship.
With 7 years’ experience under her belt, Anjali has been selected to attend GB Junior Development Squad training in Nottingham and is set to compete in the Senior Schools International in Scotland this year. She aspires to represent Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games and currently trains for around 15 hours a week, both at home and at Ormeau Table Tennis club.
Commenting on her bursary, she said: “I’m so happy to receive this award from Mary Peters Trust and Hughes Insurance. For the past seven years, I’ve been training hard and it feels great to be chosen to receive this funding from so many athletes across the country.
“I’m really looking forward to taking part in the UK Table Tennis Tournaments this June and the bursary will help a lot with my training costs.
“What started out as a hobby has become a real passion for me. Table tennis requires so many skills and a lot of concentration. I love the sense of competition and all of the emotions that I experience when I play. I hope to keep improving my game.”
In 2021, Anjali established a school lunch timetable tennis club which has succeeded in winning silver in the Ulster Schools Table Tennis Championships on multiple occasions. The club has since blossomed, gaining over 30 members.
Hughes Insurance
Bethany Carroll, Marketing Executive at Hughes Insurance said: “We are proud to renew our partnership with Mary Peters Trust for the second year running. We say that we are ‘Here for the Journey’ and this bursary programme allows us to help Lady Mary Peters continue to support Northern Ireland young sporting talent to reach their full potential.
“The bursary programme proved an incredible success last year, supporting ten young athletes from across the country on their individual journeys. At Hughes Insurance, we have greatly enjoyed watching these young people develop.
“It is our hope that Anjali and our other 2022 bursary recipients will use this funding to realise their dreams.”
The Mary Peters Trust is the only province-wide organisation to provide support to young athletes from all recognised sports. Along with Hughes Insurance, it is also supported by Alchemy Technology Services, who this year became a podium partner to support the Trust’s activities throughout 2022.
The further eight successful bursary recipients will be announced throughout 2022. To keep up to date with the selection, follow Hughes Insurance on social media, @hughesinsuranceni.
