This story appeared in the East Lothian Courier Thursday, 20th September, 2007
Judo star Euan Burton to carry Olympic torch for county
Judo star Euan Burton to carry Olympic torch for county
JUDO master Euan Burton is dreaming of Olympic glory in Beijing after claiming a stunning bronze medal at the weekend’s World Judo Championships in Rio.
The 28-year-old, originally from Pencaitland, beat Sydney Olympic gold medallist Guiseppe Maddaloni and 2005 World champion Guillaume Elmont en route to a podium finish in the under-81kg category.
The result automatically booked Burton a plane ticket to the 2008 Games and caps off a fine year following a second bronze at the European Championships and gold at the Moscow Super World Cup in May.
And the former Ross High pupil has now set his sights on returning from Beijing next August with silverware on the biggest sporting stage of all – the Olympic Games.
“I’ve had a great year and if I can keep it going then I feel as though I can win something in Beijing,” said Burton.
“I’m number one in the European rankings list and I was delighted with my performance at the World Championships in Brazil.
It’s not as if I’m getting easy draws and just sneaking through.
“Of course I realise that just because you have a good quality of results, it doesn’t mean you have a divine right to win things.
“But I now have no reason to believe that I can’t get a medal at the very least.”
Burton is one of 61 Scottish athletes who receive Lottery funding to cover day-to-day expenses and coaching costs as part of the Olympic Development Programme.
And his achievements will be officially recognised for the first time next week when he heads to Glasgow’s City Halls for the inaugural National Lottery World Class Awards.
Burton will line up alongside the cream of Scottish sport such as World Championship athletics bronze medallist Lee McConnell at the event, which will be screened on BBC2 Scotland on Wednesday at 7pm.
The National Lottery World Class Awards is the first time that Scottish athletes who receive funding through UK Sports are being recognised together.
Burton says the funding he receives from the charity has been crucial in helping finance his Olympic dream.
“Obviously the funding is a massive help to me, and I have been very fortunate to be in a position to receive it,” he added.
“I know a lot of the boys training to get to the top in judo had to sign on the dole and pretend they weren’t competing just to get by.” FONTE: East Lothian Courier - Haddington, Scotland, UK
The 28-year-old, originally from Pencaitland, beat Sydney Olympic gold medallist Guiseppe Maddaloni and 2005 World champion Guillaume Elmont en route to a podium finish in the under-81kg category.
The result automatically booked Burton a plane ticket to the 2008 Games and caps off a fine year following a second bronze at the European Championships and gold at the Moscow Super World Cup in May.
And the former Ross High pupil has now set his sights on returning from Beijing next August with silverware on the biggest sporting stage of all – the Olympic Games.
“I’ve had a great year and if I can keep it going then I feel as though I can win something in Beijing,” said Burton.
“I’m number one in the European rankings list and I was delighted with my performance at the World Championships in Brazil.
It’s not as if I’m getting easy draws and just sneaking through.
“Of course I realise that just because you have a good quality of results, it doesn’t mean you have a divine right to win things.
“But I now have no reason to believe that I can’t get a medal at the very least.”
Burton is one of 61 Scottish athletes who receive Lottery funding to cover day-to-day expenses and coaching costs as part of the Olympic Development Programme.
And his achievements will be officially recognised for the first time next week when he heads to Glasgow’s City Halls for the inaugural National Lottery World Class Awards.
Burton will line up alongside the cream of Scottish sport such as World Championship athletics bronze medallist Lee McConnell at the event, which will be screened on BBC2 Scotland on Wednesday at 7pm.
The National Lottery World Class Awards is the first time that Scottish athletes who receive funding through UK Sports are being recognised together.
Burton says the funding he receives from the charity has been crucial in helping finance his Olympic dream.
“Obviously the funding is a massive help to me, and I have been very fortunate to be in a position to receive it,” he added.
“I know a lot of the boys training to get to the top in judo had to sign on the dole and pretend they weren’t competing just to get by.” FONTE: East Lothian Courier - Haddington, Scotland, UK
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