South West athletes Alex Saffy & Lekeisha Pergoliti continue path to success with elite sporting scholarships

A Commonwealth Games silver medallist and a rising star in boxing are set to continue on their respective paths to sporting greatness after becoming the latest talents to receive an elite national scholarship.

South West-raised athletes Alex Saffy and Lekeisha Pergoliti were recently named as two of 10 athletes, and the only WA-based athletes, to receive Tier 2 scholarships in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame’s Scholarship and Mentoring program for 2023.

The scholarship adds another accolade to a breakout year for 16-year-old “Bunbury Bullet” Saffy, who claimed bronze in the 2022 World Para Swimming Championships in Madeira in June and a silver medal in his Commonwealth Games debut in Birmingham last month.

“I am very grateful for all the support I’ve received to pursue my goals and appreciate being selected as a successful SAHOF scholarship recipient,” Saffy said.

“It is an honour to be given the opportunity, especially to be amongst so many amazing athletes and role models.”

After taking home his first international medal on debut in Portugal, Saffy told the South Western Times it felt “unreal”.

“I have been dreaming of this since I was a kid and everything is falling into place at the moment,” he said.

“I am just going to live in the moment and enjoy that experience.”

For 20-year-old Pergoliti, the scholarship adds to her burgeoning elite amateur boxing career having previously placed second in the 2022 Women’s Worlds selection and Birmingham Commonwealth Games selection events earlier this year.

Pergoliti also becomes the fifth boxer selected in the SAHOF Scholarship and Mentoring program since 2006.

“I am extremely honoured and grateful that SAHOF have given me this scholarship,” Pergoliti said.

“Receiving this scholarship will allow me to travel to train and compete, assist with recovery and elevate me as an elite athlete inside and outside of the ring.

“All I have ever wanted since I started boxing is to represent my country and proudly wear the green and gold and with their support I have so much belief that my dream will become reality.”

The SAHOF Scholarship and Mentoring program is Australia’s leading sports scholarship program, backed by the Australian Sports Commission and the Australian Institute of Sport.

The three-tiered initiative awards annual funding of $150,000 across 32 scholarships to support the next generation of Australia’s sporting stars.