OREANDA-NEWS. SSE Next Generation athlete Grace Rowland is hoping to make a splash when she represents Great Britain at the inaugural European Games in Azerbaijan next month.

The 16-year-old says she is on a mission to put water polo on the map when she takes to the pool in Baku, having taken up the sport at the tender age of seven.

The Liverpool Water Polo Club member has been steadily working her way up the age ranges ever since, and now finds herself in the Great Britain under-17 squad.

SSE's Next Generation programme supports 100 young athletes across Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland through its four-year partnership with the charity SportsAid.

Grace said: “Water Polo can be quite a tough sport but I find it helps me become a more responsible person and gives me focus.

“It’s a great sport to play and I’ve made some great friends through it and had the opportunity to travel and play in other countries.

“I can’t wait to add the European Games to my list of achievements, it’s quite special that we are a part of the first ever one.

“I had to check on the British website to see if I was on the team, so I raced to my laptop at seven in the morning to check.

“It’s absolutely incredible, that I got selected. I’m so excited about it, and I’m counting down the days until I go.”

Grace adds that she wants see greater recognition for water polo in the UK.

She said: “It will be the biggest competition of my career. You have the Olympics, World and European Championships and then this is right up there.

“It’s going to be really exciting to get the kit, and that’s something I can keep forever and that will remind me of what I have achieved.

“Hopefully this will be an opportunity to show that water polo is a great sport and should be taken more seriously in Great Britain.”

SSE’s Next Generation programme partners with SportsAid to provide financial support and training to the sports stars of the future. . Keep up to date with the latest information via the @SSENextgen Twitter feed.

The European Games will take place from June 12-28.