IOC awards scholarships to six Australians in their quest to compete in Paris 2024

The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) has awarded six athletes with Olympic scholarships for Paris 2024. The funds will support their goal of competing in the Olympic Games. Each athlete will receive $25,000 to support their goal to qualify and compete in Paris 2024.

The scholarship award winners are: Caitlin Parker (boxing), Eileen Cikamatana (weightlifting), Laura Paeglis (archery), Jayden Lawrence (wrestling), Nicholas Lum (table tennis) and Uros Nikolic (judo).

These athletes were part of the 2018 Youth Olympics team which took place in Argentina. Cikamatana is a multiple world record holder and a 2018 Commonwealth Games champion, while Lawrence and Nikolic have both won multiple Australian Junior titles and have medaled internationally.

Parker is the only Australian recipient to have competed at Tokyo 2020, with the remaining five athletes aiming to make their Olympic debut in Paris.

AOC CEO Matt Carroll congratulated the six athletes on being selected for the Paris 2024 Olympic scholarship.

“Chasing an Olympic dream takes incredible determination and talent - these six athletes have all demonstrated they have what it takes. But they also need support to train, compete and maximize their performance opportunities around the world to provide the best opportunity to represent Australia at the Paris Games.

The 22-year-old Cikamatana has already shown her potential, winning multiple gold medals at the World Cup level in her 81kg weight category.

“I feel very honored to have been selected for this scholarship,” Cikamatana said. “For me it means that my performances, hard work and sacrifices have been recognized and that I am worthy of assistance”

“I know there are so many excellent athletes in Australia, I am so grateful I have been chosen”.

Western Australian boxer Caitlin Parker said her experience at Tokyo has her even more focused for Paris.

“It feels amazing to have my potential recognized and for this scholarship to support my road to Paris 2024,” Parker said.

With the scholarship, Parker will be able to compete in as many tournaments as she can between now and 2024, allowing her to keep up with her competitive spirit.

“To represent Australia in Paris would be a dream come true. This scholarship reduces my concern of costs associated with training, traveling locally and internationally, competing and frequent replacement of training gear – I can stay focused and fully committed to be the best I can be.”

The scholarship support provided by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will help these athletes reach their Olympic goal and realize their athletic dreams.

Parker continued “I’m so grateful for this scholarship. It will help my performance, my mental wellbeing, and allow me to focus fully on training with that support and the flexibility to do what I need to be at my absolute best.

The athletes, will receive disbursements of $8,333 each year for the next three years.