THE sporting dreams of a dozen Olympic hopefuls have received a boost.

Essex County Council has announced the names of the 12 athletes it hopes will be representing the county in the 2012 London Olympics.

Those selected include five north-east Essex sports men and women – Colchester race walking twins Daniel and Dominc King, 25, disability swimmer Ryan Crouch, 14, West Mersea sailor Martin Evans, 16, and 100 metre hurdler Sarah Claxton, 29.

They will each get £6,500 towards the costs of training and international competitions.

In return, the athletes will become sporting ambassadors for the county and help inspire more young people to take up sport.

Stephen Castle, cabinet member for the 2012 Games, said: “As equally important as the funding is the commitment the athletes are making to work with the young people in our county – to encourage them in sport and teach them about commitment and discipline.”

Colchester Royal Grammar School student Martin Evans is one of the country’s top young sailors at the laser class.

Ryan Crouch, of Ipswich Swimming Club, hopes to use the funds to make a splash at the Paralympics in four year’s time.

Race walker Daniel King, narrowly missed out on selection for the Beijing Olympics and is the number one British race walker while his twin brother, Dominic, has maintained his position as the UK’s number two.

Sarah Claxton, 29, of Monkwick, Colchester, has already reached the finals of the 100 metre hurdles in the Beijing Olympics and has been crowned the second quickest British woman of all time at 100metre hurdles.

“The money will help me get to and from training, buy the right food and supplements and just prepare for competitions,” she said.

The athletes will be formally presented with their awards at a reception at The House of Lords in January.