More than £11,000 has been awarded to some of Derby's rising sporting stars in the past few months to help them reach their potential.
A total of 44 athletes, who live in Derby or compete for clubs in the city, have each received a bursary of up to £300 from the Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund.
All of the athletes either currently compete for England or Great Britain or have been tipped to do so within 18 months.
They will use their bursaries to help meet training and competition costs as they strive to reach their sporting goals.
The athletes receiving a bursary include five basketball players, five karate competitors, four swimmers, three kickboxers and three rugby union players, as well as athletes competing in cricket, tennis, boxing, sailing and many other sports.
The outgoing Mayor of Derby, Councillor Amar Nath, congratulated the athletes during a presentation at The Gateway Centre in Derby earlier this month.
The Talented Athlete Fund was launched four years ago amid fears that a lack of money could hold back Derbyshire's brightest stars.
Thanks to financial contributions from more than 25 organisations, extra bursaries are being handed out across more than 30 sports.
The organisations, including the Derby Telegraph, have all joined the business forum ICON.
As part of this, members pay a £300 annual fee which goes into the Talented Athlete Fund.
In return for their cash, ICON helps organisations by alerting them to business opportunities, while providing advice on how to encourage their workforce to be more active and healthy.
It also ensures they are part of efforts to help Derbyshire become one of the most successful sporting counties in England by 2020.
The Derbyshire Talented Athlete Fund is managed by Derbyshire Sport.