Olympian/Paralympian supporters

Here a number of Olympian and Paralympians describe why they are proud to support the P&G Surrey School Games.

Jonnie Peacock

London 2012 T44 100m Paralympic gold medalist and world record holder.

"My first experience of a multi sport competition was the UK School Games which I thoroughly enjoyed participating in whilst I was still at school. Since then I have trained hard and dedicated myself to my sport. Winning gold and setting a new world record at London 2012 was amazing, I hope I have inspired more young peoiple to take part in sport, good luck to everyone taking part in the 2013 P&G Surrey School Games."

Joanna Rowsell

London 2012 gold medalist in the Team Pursuit.

''Competing at London 2012 was an amazing experience and to win a gold medal was something I had dreamed about since I started racing at 15 years old when I was noticed at my school. I would like to wish everyone taking part in the P&G Surrey School Games the best of luck, representing your school is the first step in realising your sporting ambitions.''

Kylie Grimes

London 2012 GB Wheelchair Rugby athlete and European silver medalist.

"I have only been in a chair for a few years but have had amazing experience competing in wheelchair rugby espcially being the only female member of the London 2012 GB team. I remember competing in Netball at the Youth Games and how much I enjoyed taking part. I hope the Olympics and Paralympics have inspired more young people to take part in sport. Good luck to everyone taking part in the 2013 P&G Surrey School Games!"

Stef Reid

London 2012 F44 Long Jump Paralympic silver medalist

"My Paralympic sporting careers began in school with the encouragement of my teacher. I believe in the power of sport to change lives and change percpetions. I was so thankful for the opportunity to play sport in school and would encourage everyone to participate."

Helen Turner

London 2012 GB Wheelchair Basketball athlete and 4 time European bronze medalist

"Playing sport has changed my life, I have travelled the world and met some great people. Competing at London 2012 was fantastic, I hope it has inspired everyone taking part in the 2013 P&G Surrey School Games."

Rebecca Romero

Cycling gold medallist at the 2008 Olympics. Rowing silver medallist from Olympics in 2004.

"I am thrilled to support the Surrey School Games. Having grown up locally and represented my school in a number of sports, I know how exciting the Games will be. I would like to encourage all of the young people taking part to work hard and try your best, winning gold is the greatest feeling!"

Oscar Pistorius

100m, 200m and 400m gold medalist in the 2008 Paralympics.

''I am delighted to show my support for the 2012 Surrey School Games. Next year is going to be a very special year for sport in the UK with the Olympics and Paralympics coming to London and it is very important that school children have an opportunity to try new sports and test themselves against each other. When I was growing up in South Africa, I was very lucky that my parents encouraged me to play as many sports as possible but it wasn't until I was 16 years old that I discovered that my best sport was sprinting.
I hear that this year's Surrey School Games is going to be bigger and better than before and I am sure that there is lots of young sporting talent just waiting to make their names in 2012. Good luck to all.''

Ross Wilson

London 2012 Paralympic Table Tennis Men's Team, Class 6 - 8, bronze medalist

"London 2012 was the best experience of my life, being 17 years old and winning a bronze medal was incredible. I hope everyone taking part in the 2013 Surrey School Games has been inspired to work even harder to achieve their goals, good luck!"

Adam Knott

London 2012 Goallball Athlete

"Competing at London 2012 was an amazing experience, I hope you enjoy competing at the Surrey School Games 2013. Use this as a platform to achieve your sporting goals."

Andy Turner

110m Hurdles gold medallist in the 2010 European Championships and gold medallist in the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

"As a European and Commonwealth champion I believe in the power of sport. From a young age I competed in Athletics and really enjoyed representing my school. I would like to wish all of the young people taking part in the Surrey School Games the best of luck, this is a great opportunity for a future Olympian to be discovered!"

Danny Crates

800m gold medallist from the 2004 Paralympic Games.

"I gained my passion for sport in school. I can still remember my first PE teacher, Mr Richard's. He introduced me to my most cherished sports, Rugby and Athletics. Through clubs and competitions school offers the greatest opportunities to both participate and compete in sport. That is why I am delighted to support the P&G Surrey School Games, I would like to wish all of the participants the best of luck."

Jade Johnson

Long Jump silver medallist in the European Championships in 2002 and silver medallist in the Commonwealth Games in 2002.

"It is more important now than ever that we begin to support the talent of the future, the people who will compete in 2016, 2020 and beyond. Our development system is under such a strain that grassroots programmes are essential if we are to have competitors challenging for medals. It's a long journey, but if you are passionate about sport, go for it."

Ben Ainslie OBE

Sailing Gold medallist from the Olympic Games in 2000, 2004 and 2008. Also Silver medallist from the 1996 Olympic Games.

“I am delighted to support the Surrey School Games. Achieving a Gold medal at each of the last three Olympics is more than I ever imagined and I hope to have the opportunity to compete at the London 2012 Games. I wish all the participants in the Surrey School Games the best of luck and success both now and in their future sporting careers.”

Gail Emms

Badminton Silver medallist from the 2004 Olympic Games.

“I’m delighted to support the Surrey School Games because I think most sports people’s love of sport started at school. I loved playing all sports at school. I was in all different teams and it taught me if you put the hard work in you will get rewarded with great results. I can’t praise the importance of school sport enough.”

Vicki Hansford

Rowing Bronze medallist from the 2008 Paralympic Games.

“I think that the Surrey School Games and Surrey Youth Games are vital in progressing a child’s career in elite sport. You need to be exposed to competition at a young age to become tough and robust, it is important so that it is not new to you when you get older and start competing at a high level.

My background is in sports psychology, so from that point of view it is incredibly important. But also it is good for them to enjoy the fun side of competition, so its great to have such a competition at a school age.”

Kriss Akabusi MBE

Athletics Silver medallist from the 1984 Olympic Games and double Bronze medallist from the 1992 Olympic Games.

“I am thrilled to add my support to the Surrey School Games. Sport is more than a game! It is a unifying agent that teaches its participants about rules and regulations, that life is not fair and the best guys don’t always win, but with perseverance, determination, dedication and commitment one can achieve most things."

Rachel Cawthorn

Flat water kayak current European champion over 1000m and first GB woman to medal at a world championship with bronze in 2010.

"I am delighted add my support to the P&G Surrey School Games! As an elite athlete, I now realise how important school sport is, much more than I ever realised whilst actually at school! Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed sport at school, but now I’ve realised how much I’ve gained from it. Not only the enjoyment factor, but I’ve learnt so many (surprising!) life skills through taking part in sport, just to name a few; team work, commitment, communication skills, and most of all confidence. School sport is the perfect opportunity for kids to experiment with and get involved with many different sports, and whether they go on to be our next Olympic Champion, or just compete for fun, I’m sure they’ll all get a lot out of it. Good Luck to you all, and Enjoy."

 Abigail Edmonds

K4 500m sprint kayaker 2009 silver medallist in the Australian youth Olympics

"Sport is all about enjoyment, overcoming obstacles, and developing. It teaches us all how to handle delight, disappointment, and other people. This is why I am so supportive of the Surrey School Games. I have always loved sport, and threw myself into as many different ones as possible at school. One of the saddest things about being an elite athlete is that I no longer get those opportunities. So make the most of them! Who knows what sport you will be good at? I never thought mine would be kayaking"

Samantha Lowe

Judo 78kg Commonwealth Games Champion

"I was thrilled to see the number of children participating in the Surrey School Games. I think it is fantastic opportunity to experience competition in a supportive and friendly environment. I can imagine it will be a vital stepping stone for many young people and hopefully lots went home with the competition bug and will progress on to greater things. Good luck to them all, with lots of hard work and dedication maybe amongst them is a future Olympian!"