Sport Lisburn & Castlereagh shines a spotlight on local talent

Sponsored by Decathlon, the award recognises the achievements and dedication of sporting stars in the Lisburn & Castlereagh area.

The winners are selected each month by the Sport Lisburn & Castlereagh Executive Committee and each successful winner is presented with a £100 Decathlon voucher.

The Sports Personality of the Month winner for October was golfer Fionn Dobbin.

At just 17 years old, Fionn has represented Ulster at the Golf Ireland Inter-Provincial tournaments, at both boys and men’s level, and contributed to the victorious boys’ team by representing Ireland at the R&A Home Internationals against Scotland, England and Wales. Fionn has also represented Golf Ireland as part of the European Championship team and he has played internationally as an individual in both France and Portugal, winning the Edge Golf championship in Portugal.

Men’s gymnast David Martelli was November’s Sports Personality of the Month winner.

David recently competed in the Men’s Gymnastics Irish International Trials at the National Indoor Arena in Dublin. The trials saw David dominate both days and achieve a remarkable Personal Best score of 13.35 on the Pommel Horse. Driven by his pursuit of perfection, David made a strategic move to Origin Gymnastics, where under the guidance of Luke Carson, Gymnastics Ireland National Coach, he is excelling in his training alongside his sporting idol, two-time World Gymnastics Champion, Rhys McClenaghan.

Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council Sports Development Officer Faron Morrison said, "Congratulations to Fionn and David for their remarkable achievements in golf and gymnastics.

"Fionn's outstanding golfing skills earned him another place on Golf Ireland's National High-Performance panel, and he has been awarded a full scholarship to play college golf at Kansas State University in the USA. Meanwhile, David's dominance in international trials and achievement of a personal best showcase his exceptional talent in gymnastics."

Matthew Ferguson, Communication Manager at Decathlon Belfast added: “We have met many great sports personalities through the initiative and look forward to following their sporting journeys in the years to come.”