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From an Olympic track athlete to a budding basketball star and an ambitious football player-coach, University College Birmingham’s newest sports scholars are a crop well worth watching out for. 

Several on the University’s undergraduate and postgraduate courses have been awarded a Sporting Excellence Scholarship this semester, offering a wealth of benefits including funding, access to state-of-the-art sports facilities on campus and a personalised support programme.

Up to six scholarships are awarded each year to student sports stars who are deemed ‘elite’ or ‘talented’ performers in their field – and the latest recipients certainly possess plenty of potential.

Among them is Sadam Koumi (pictured), a 400m runner who has already faced the very best in the world on the track at the Tokyo Olympics last summer.

The second year Sports Management FdA student, who competes for Sudan, narrowly missed out on a semi-final place at the Games in August after finishing fifth in a heat that included the event’s gold medal winner, Steven Gardiner.

Sadam’s season-best time of 46.26 seconds was all the more impressive given the Olympics represented his first official competition in two years, following a knee operation and the disruption of the coronavirus pandemic.

Having tested himself at the very top level of his sport, the 27-year-old Birchfield Harriers runner is now hoping to go even further at the next Olympic Games in Paris in 2024. Sadam said:

Going to Tokyo was a dream come true, but it was also a beginning for me. Going to Paris, my aim would be higher.

I’m already an Olympian. I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I would be going to Paris aiming to make the final, and then anything is possible. That’s my aim.

Sadam, who works part-time at a Birmingham primary school alongside his athletics and studies, has been awarded ‘elite performer’ status on the University’s Sporting Excellence Scholarship scheme.

The scholarship offers up to £3,000 of funding towards competitions, training and equipment over three years, as well as a tailored programme offering everything from nutrition and sports psychology to strength and conditioning or lifestyle support. Sadam continues:

The support I will get from the University going towards my training camp and my travel expenses – something I have been struggling with – is very good to have and will help me a lot personally.

What the University can offer to support me in my career is something every athlete would love to have. It’s a massive boost to me personally, financially and in terms of facilities, plus my lecturers are very understanding of what I’m doing in my career.

Sadam is not the only track star at University College Birmingham looking ahead to Paris.

Kristiyan Patarov also has his sights set on an Olympic outing in the French capital.

The hurdles specialist has impressed at a string of major events in recent years, reaching the semi-finals of the 110m hurdles at the European U20 Championships two years ago, as well as recording numerous top-three finishes at national championships in his native Bulgaria, including winning the 60m hurdles at the Bulgarian U20 Indoor Championships in 2019.

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic limiting his competitive opportunities since then, this year has seen the 21-year-old come first in the 110m hurdles at several events around the Midlands, and 2022 offers the potential for bigger and better accomplishments, including another European Championships bid in the summer.

Multi-talented Kristiyan also works as a chef and is studying for a Business Enterprise BA (Hons) degree with aspirations to one day run his own restaurant.

But with just two-and-a-half years until the next Olympic opportunity, he is firmly focused on putting in the work and preparation on the track – something he believes the University’s ‘elite performer’ scholarship will help him to achieve.

University College Birmingham provides a wealth of support for young athletes and budding professionals studying on their sports courses to help them succeed in their competitive ambitions.

Sports scholars also have access to our state-of-the-art sports facilities at University College Birmingham, including a cutting-edge gym, purpose-built sports injury and massage clinics and a Human Performance Centre, as well as the use of the Avery Fields sports complex which the University shares with Bournville RFC.

Two levels of support are available – an ‘elite performer’ package for students competing at national, junior international or international level, and a ‘talented performer’ package for students competing at county level or above with the potential to progress.

Elaine Limond, deputy dean for Strategy, Recruitment and Innovation at the University’s School of Health, Sport and Food, said:

We’re always keen to support our elite and aspiring athletes at University College Birmingham.

With a scholarship programme that meets the bespoke needs of each individual, our staff and athletes work together, often using the University’s specialist sports facilities, to ensure they have access to all the support they require.

As with their predecessors on the programme, we can’t wait to see what these current students go on to do in their sporting and industry careers.

Full details about the scholarship scheme are available here. Discover the full range of college, undergraduate and postgraduate courses within the Department of Sport and Nutrition.

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