A TEENAGE water polo player from Wensleydale has received a £200 council grant in recognition of her outstanding achievements in the sport.

Charlotte Hanson, 16, of Aysgarth, was awarded a talented young sports person grant by Richmondshire District Council.

Although she took up water polo only two years ago, she is already a member of the Great Britain junior ladies' team and competed in the Czech Republic in February, France in March and Scotland in April.

She also plays for Catterick Cobras and Harrogate and Ripon Shortwalkers in the women's national league, and has represented the North-Eastern counties in the national district championships.

She is also an accomplished swimmer and competes regularly at county and district level. She is captain of Bedale Sharks Swimming Club, where she holds all ladies' club records.

Geoff Thompson, the council's economic, cultural and leisure unit manager, said: "We wanted to offer some financial assistance to help pay for the ever-increasing costs of competing at this level. Charlotte's training programme is very intensive, involving over 300 miles of travelling a week. This is in addition to any coaching costs or competition expenses."

Charlotte is studying for her GCSEs at St Francis Xavier School in Richmond, where she was awarded the William Brown sport award for outstanding achievement in sport in 2001. She represents the school at netball, hockey, athletics and swimming.

In September, she takes up a place at the National Water Polo Academy at Grantham, where she will combine training and further academic studies.

She said: "I am delighted to receive this grant. I train regularly at Eston, near Middlesbrough, and at Bedale, Harrogate and Catterick, and the money can be used to offset some of the costs involved with travelling to these venues."

She was recently selected as one of three reserve players for the Great Britain team at the 2002 European water polo championships in Portugal in July.

Two other local youngsters have also received talented young sports person grants from the council. They are golfer Rachel Thorpe, 12, from Richmond, who received £50 and cross-country runner and athlete Nicholas Zissler, 14, from High Row, Melsonby, awarded £100.