Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park’s grant giving programme, the Sheffield Legacy Fund today (Wednesday 16 April) received a £25,000 donation from Matchroom Charitable Foundation, kick starting a huge week for snooker and boxing in the city.
The donation means up to 25 grassroots community organisations within a three-mile radius of Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park can now apply for grants of up to £1,000 to fund their activities addressing physical and mental health and wellbeing. The priority for these funds is to support all, or the majority, of the event or activity so that the grant can have real impact.
Snooker legend Ken Doherty and local boxing hero Dalton Smith were joined by fellow fighter Josh Padley and Leader of Sheffield City Council, Cllr Tom Hunt, to present the cheque. The event took place in the presence of young sporting hopefuls during a visit to the Stephen Harrison Snooker Academy. The Academy is located at the Park and has previously benefitted from a Sheffield Legacy Fund donation to support snooker sessions for young people with learning disabilities.
European and WBC Silver Super-Lightweight Champion Smith headlines at the Canon Medical Arena – also situated at the Park – on Saturday 19 April, live on DAZN, when he defends his titles against rival Mathieu Germain with fellow Yorkshireman Padley also on the card as he challenges Marko Cvetanovic for the vacant WBA International Lightweight belt.
Irish icon Doherty is, of course, immortalised in snooker history having celebrated his famous 1997 World Championships victory at The Crucible. The 55-year-old is part of the BBC commentary team for this year’s tournament, which begins on Saturday 19 April.
With a rich sporting history between snooker and boxing in the Steel City, Matchroom Sport Chairman Eddie Hearn believes that this initial donation to the Sheffield Legacy Fund will inspire thousands of youngsters to enjoy participating in many of the grassroots clubs which stand to benefit from the sizable injection of funds.
“Sheffield is synonymous with sport, and we are delighted to provide this donation on behalf of the Matchroom Charitable Foundation today,” said Hearn.
“We know that sport has the power to change lives. Nothing pleases me more than seeing young people in this country thrive in gyms and clubs up and down the UK. So, this really is special as it will inspire and enable many more youngsters to enjoy and participate throughout associated grassroots communities in Sheffield over the next 12 months.”
Claire Fretwell, Operations Manager at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park said: “We’re thrilled to receive this donation from Matchroom Charitable Foundation and have the opportunity to collaborate in transforming lives through sport and community activity.
“The Sheffield Legacy Fund has already supported 40 grassroots organisations to deliver a wide range of activities promoting physical and mental health and wellbeing and social inclusion.
“From climbing, dancing, and gardening groups to ice hockey, rugby and snooker sessions and a variety of activities in between, these initiatives have so far reached over 3,000 individuals across our local communities.
“We’re incredibly grateful for Matchroom’s generous support and we’re excited to expand our reach, empower more people, and create an even greater positive impact going forward.”
Cllr Tom Hunt, Leader of Sheffield City Council, added: “Sheffield loves snooker and the sport has deep roots in our city. Every day, grassroots sports clubs and community groups from across Sheffield do important work with communities to improve people’s health and wellbeing.
“Matchroom’s generous donation to local community groups shows their commitment to Sheffield. Sport changes lives and the funding will enable more local organisations to provide support to communities in Sheffield.”
The Sheffield Legacy Fund was launched in 2023 to support local grassroots organisations and is administered by South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation. For more information, including how to apply, please visit: https://www.sycf.org.uk/apply/search-our-grants/sheffield-legacy-fund
The Matchroom Charitable Foundation was created to centralise the benevolent efforts of Matchroom Sport, the global sports promotion company headed by Eddie Hearn, and its subsidiaries – the Professional Darts Corporation, Matchroom Boxing, World Snooker and Matchroom MultiSport.
Since its inception, the Matchroom Charitable Foundation has donated in excess of £4.5 million to a wide-range of charities throughout its many sporting activities, including sports and community charities and a number of hospices for both children and adults.
