A TEENAGE sprinter has won funding to boost his bid to compete at a test event for the London 2012 Olympics.

Ben Stephenson, 18, of Ingleby Arncliffe, near Northallerton, who has been given £500 from the Yorkshire Young Achievers’ Foundation, said the grant would help him with his travelling and training expenses.

He said: “This will really make a difference. Whether it’s petrol or train, gym or track, none of it is cheap.”

Ben is ranked among the top ten 200m sprinters in the country for his age group, with personal bests of 10.99 seconds for the 100 metres and 21.70 seconds for the 200 metres.

The Loughborough University student, who attended Stokesley School, is in training for next season and hopes to win a place at the British Universities and Colleges Sport Outdoor Athletics Championships, which will be held at the London Olympic stadium.

He discovered his talent for sprinting in 2007 and in his first year of competition qualified for the English Schools Championships and the National Championships.

Ben’s medals to date include gold at the Yorkshire County Championships in 2008; bronze at the UK Schools Championships in 2009 and gold in the 100m and bronze in the 200m representing the North of England at an International Match in Malta in 2010.

Foundation chairman Peter McCormick said: “Ben is a young man who is striving to achieve his very best without any financial support and this is exactly the type of endeavour that the foundation wants to support. We wish him the best for the 2012 season.”