AN athletics club has received a cash boost to help it get back on track.
The Kidderminster and Stourport Athletics Club is based at Stourport Sports Club in Kingsway, Stourport-on-Severn, which was destroyed in an arson attack in December last year.
Last week 19-year-old Damien Evans, of Tomkinson Drive, Kidderminster, was locked up for four years for the arson.
The Midcounties Co-operative Community Fund will help get the athletics club out of the starting blocks again with a £500 grant for replacement kit and equipment.
Sue Saunders, club secretary, endurance coach and team manager, said: “We were devastated by the news that all our athletics equipment had been destroyed through this act of vandalism. We lost everything from hurdles, to javelins, to running vests and shorts and we have not been able to host competitions.
“The local community has been great in helping us reach our target of £25,000, which is needed to repair the facility and replace what was lost. We are very grateful to The Midcounties Co-operative for helping us towards our goal.”
The club was formed in 1972 and merged with the Kidderminster Running Club in 2000. It now has 160 members, aged from nine to 70 years old.
Maxine Sharman, senior community co-ordinator at Midcounties, said: “The Kidderminster and Stourport Athletics Club is a fantastic example of an organisation helping people of all ages keep fit and healthy, and it was a great shame when the fire caused so much damage.”
For more information about the athletics club call 01562 861431 or 01562 632524.
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