AN 11 year old Glengormley gymnast is set to live a sporting dream at this summer’s Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Amelia Cropera (above) is one of six youngsters selected by the British Olympic Association to act as Team GB’s first ever Mini Mascots.
Team GB received over 20,000 entries from parents and guardians who applied for the chance for their child to be selected, with any child living in the UK, aged 5-11 eligible to be nominated. Following the nomination process, a shortlist was asked why they’d love to be chosen as a Mini Mascot and were judged by the British Olympic Assocation (BOA) .
Representing all four home nations, the final six mascots are as follows:
Josh Davidson, aged 9 from Glasgow
Dora McHardy, aged 8 from Surrey
Alice Wu, aged 8 from Leeds
Amelia Cropera, aged 11 from Belfast
Elliott Lefley, aged 11 from Devon
Santino Perrin, age 9 from Burry Port
The Mini Mascots will support Team GB athletes all the way to Paris, from kitting out – where athletes will head to Birmingham to collect their Olympic kit – to local team announcements and participating in Team GB Fanzones to watch the action and cheer on Team GB.
Carly Hodgson, Team GB Head of Marketing said: “We’re so excited to announce the first ever Mini Mascots and welcome Josh, Dora, Alice, Amelia, Elliott, and Santino to Team GB for the first time.
The passion from the six finalists came through really clearly in their entry videos and it was brilliant to see this come to life when meeting them in person. They will be an asset in rallying their communities to support Team GB in the run up to Paris, in a role that we know will be hugely exciting and inspiring for both them and our athletes.
“We’re especially happy that the children who made it through the application process represent each of the nations which make up Team GB – England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.”
The children were introduced to each other for the first-time last year, participating in a photo shoot and meet-and-greet with canoe slalom Olympic silver medallist, Mallory Franklin.
Mallory Franklin said: “I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the Mini Mascots and found it incredibly inspiring to see the next generation are so excited to cheer us on from the sidelines. It is a really important initiative to not only get kids involved in sport, but also to give athletes like myself even more motivation to succeed this year.
“I may be biased, but the Olympics is incredibly fun and I am excited for them Josh, Dora, Alice, Amelia, Elliott, and Santino to experience this in a never-seen-before way.”
Amelia (far left) with the other Mini Mascots and, second from left, below, with canoe slalom Olympic silver medallist Mallory Franklin
