British No.1 Breeze forced to consider her future

Posted: Tuesday 10th February 2009 | 16:07

DOUBLE Commonwealth champion Michaela Breeze believes she will have no weightlifting future if the UK Sport funding cuts leave her out of pocket.

Michaela Breeze struggles through the pain at the Beijing Olympics
DOWN AND OUT?: Britain's Michaela Breeze fears for her future after UK Sport funding cuts (Getty Images)

Breeze topped the podium at both the 2002 and 2006 Commonwealth Games and was Britain's only weightlifting representative at the Beijing Olympics.

She battled through injury to reach a credible 15th place but saw weightlifting, along with seven other fringe Olympic sport,s receiving cuts after a £50million shortfall in private funding.

And Breeze, 28, who saw her sport receive a a budget for London 2012 of £0.717m - 57.6 per cent down on the Beijing 2008 budget, is adamant her London 2012 participation is in serious doubt should she feel the effects of the cuts.

"I've been left high and dry," she said. "If I do get cut then I'm not sure where I'm going to be. My future in the sport really depends on what happens and what decisions are made.

"It's not just the direct support they give me, it's also the physio support and the medical back-up which all adds up.

"It's quite a hefty bill when you're receiving as much treatment as I am to keep my body in shape and to keep going.

"If I get cut I can't argue with that because I didn't get results last year so at the end of the day no results, no support."

While Breeze has enjoyed notable success for Wales at he Commonwealth Games, she has been able to repoduce such form at other major international events.

And while she acknowledges the pressure on UK Sport to produce medals at London 2012 and their subsequent funding decisions, the part-time school teacher insists they cannot expect overnight success.

"It's an absolute travesty," she added. "The authorities are looking for results but at the same time they have to realise that results don't just happen.

"We've got to have the long-term backing and support in order to achieve sustained success.

"They put the pressure on to say 'we want results' at the Europeans, the World Championships and the Olympics, but they're expecting those results to almost come from nowhere with no support."