Swimmer Rory Shirley, has his sights firmly set on Commonwealth and Olympic glory and with the sponsorship of Thompsons Solicitors he has the best chance to go all the way.
The 16 year old from Jordanhill, who swims for the City of Glasgow Swim Team – the same club as Scottish Commonwealth Games gold medallist Robbie Renwick - has represented Scotland at UK School Games and WISE Internationals but is under no illusions of the hard work and determination he needs to succeed.
“It’s going to be tough, but I’m ready to give it my best shot. There’s going to be a lot of competition but with my coach Andrena, mentor Fergus and Thompsons behind me I feel I’ve got the best chance.” he said, “The main problem for me was getting to training in the morning”.
Since his father’s tragic death in a road traffic accident when he was just 6 weeks old, Rory’s mum and the family have rallied round to support his swimming. But, when his grandfather’s health meant he was no longer able to take Rory to his 5.30 am training session he needed help.
Rory’s mentor Fergus, himself a former Scotland rugby international, knows only too well the importance of training to reach the top. He contacted the team at Thompsons Solicitors to sponsor the youngster and they were delighted to get involved.
Speaking of the sponsorship Rory said, “It feels great to have the backing of Thompsons. It allows me to do the training I need to do and I’ve got no worries. I can just work on my training and focus on getting in shape to compete.”
Partner at Thompsons Solicitors, Andrew Henderson, praised Rory’s abilities and said:
“Rory is a huge home-grown talent and we are fully behind him to qualify and succeed at future Commonwealth Games and Olympics. We’re delighted to be sponsoring his efforts.
“At Thompsons Solicitors everything we do is geared towards supporting the victims of accidents and their families. After losing his father at such a young age, we’re happy to be able to give Rory that extra bit of support to reach his goal.
“He’s got so much potential and Thompsons Solicitors is behind him all the way to make Scotland and Glasgow proud on the international sporting stage.”