Olympic Athlete Training Camp

Who Am I?

Hello, my name's Andrew Steele, I'm an Olympic athlete running the 400m and the 4x400m for Great Britain. I'm looking for sponsors and beneficiaries to help me fund an essential training camp in Australia, as part of my preparation for the London 2012 Olympic games. 

I've represented my country at every level of international competition from the European Championships, Commonwealth Games, and World Championships through to the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008.

The London Evening Standard recently ran a feature about me, please have a read here.

Why Do I Need to Train in Australia?

Since 2007, I've taken a trip every year in February to Canberra, Australia to live and train at the Australian Institute of Sport for up to 2 months. The AIS is one of the best sports facilities in the world, and as a sprinter, there is a huge physiological advantage to training in a warm climate. Everything an athlete needs is on-site, from physiotherapy and nutrition through to strength and conditioning coaching and psychology. This trip has been absolutely integral to my development and success as an athlete in the past and in Olympic year, it is more important than ever that I do everything I can to achieve success.

How Good Am I?

My best time for 400m is 44.94s, which I set while winning my heat at the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. Running under the 45-second barrier is seen as the benchmark of world-class 400-metre running and a 44-second run in the final of any major championship will always put the athlete in contention for a medal. (You can see a video of my personal best race here).

I was also part of the Team GB 4x400m relay squad in Beijing, where we finished 4th in the final, just 6 tenths of a second outside of a medal in a time of 2:58.81 – a time which would have finished in medal position at every other Olympic Games in history.

Matthew Pinsent, the legendary British Rower and four-time Olympic Gold Medalist, once described 4th place as the “worse place to finish”. Having experienced this first hand, I can confirm he was right! We were so close to becoming Olympic Medalists and produced an amazing performance, yet we had to walk away with nothing.

Additionally, I was British Champion in 2007, and have been amongst the country's top 400 metre runners for many years.

What are my Chances at London 2012?

Very good! If I can run close to, or faster than my best time in the individual final, I will have every chance of an individual medal at next summer’s games. The standard of international 400 metre running is not what it once was, leaving the field more open than ever for individual glory in London. In the 4x400 metre relay, in front of a home crowd, we stand every chance of winning Gold. The USA men’s team, traditionally close to undefeatable in this event, won this year’s world championships in a time slower than that which we ran in Beijing. Spurred on by the occasion, we have every chance of causing an historic upset and sealing a place in British sporting legend.

Charles Van Commenee, the head coach of UK Athletics has provided me with the following quote, attesting to my chances at London 2012 - 

“Andrew Steele is one of the UK's top 400 metre runners, and with the correct preparation and support over the next 10 months I fully expect him to play a major part in my team for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Knowing Andrew personally, I am confident he will do everything he possibly can to achieve his very best next summer, he is a dedicated and disciplined individual with the ability to make a big mark at London." 

Why Do I Need Your Money?

Since Beijing 2008, my sporting journey has not gone as smoothly as planned, with injury and illness severely hampering my training and competition. Please have a read of the full story in this article, which I wrote for BBC Sport in August.

As a result of these difficulties, on December 1st this year my funding from UK Sport will officially end, leaving me without any income and no way of funding the training camp myself. Training for this level of elite sport is a full-time job, and requires a lot of discipline and the very best facilities.

It is a rare thing to be a spectator in a time when a home Olympic games is taking place, rarer still to be able to compete in any Olympic Games at all... But to be of a competitive level with a genuine chance of an Olympic medal at a home games is such a rare occasion that I cannot give up just because UK Sport are unable to fund me for a year longer. As a result, I am doing literally everything I possibly can to realize this dream and seize this once in a lifetime opportunity.

What Will Donors Get in Return?

I would never seek to make any profit from this process; all I need is to cover my necessary training expenses for the camp in order to give myself the best chance of success at the London games, so the first and foremost reward for any donor is to know that you have played an absolutely integral and tangible part in getting me to the games.

I also have a sliding scale of rewards linked to the amount donated, further detailed in the rewards section, ranging from a credit on my website, signed kit and/or photos through to public speaking and school appearances.

All of the rewards are cumulative - e.g. If you donate £100, you will of course receive the rewards for the lesser amounts as well.

Thank you in advance for anybody able to help at all, every small amount raised helps me take one step closer to being a part of the most seminal sporting event in Britain's history and realising my lifelong dream.
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NB. - The amount I have stated here is the total amount required to fund my entire training camp - should I be successful in finding sponsorship from sources outside of sponsume.com, I will of course reduce the above total correspondingly! 

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