Although her sport is not on the programme in Birmingham, taekwondo teenager Adelaide Barnes is looking forward to getting her first experience of a multi-sport event when she visits the Commonwealth Games.

The 17-year-old, who was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, and now lives in Preston with her family, is in her first year as part of the GB Taekwondo Development Squad.

But it is another martial art she will be witnessing in Birmingham, as judo is one of the sports Barnes is hoping to catch during her trip to the West Midlands.

Barnes is looking forward to the educational aspect of her visit, saying: “Being in that atmosphere, around so many professional athletes, is where I want to be.”

Each year, athletes are nominated to SportsAid by the national governing bodies of more than 60 sports, based on set criteria.

The Rising Stars athletes will be receiving financial support through Aldi as well as a monthly food voucher, to fuel them through training, competitions and to future Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“My visit to the Commonwealth Games will just help me put in perspective what I have got to do to go to the next Games [in Victoria, Australia], if taekwondo is in there, how this is going to get me ready for the Olympics, emotionally and physically,” she added.

“Just seeing that and how the athletes work I feel like will put some nerves in me, but the good kind which make me feel excited.

“We’ll be wandering about a bit, but I know our first sport is going to be judo – I haven’t actually ever seen judo, so I’m really excited to see what that looks like.”

As part of the Development Squad, Barnes can train alongside players who have been serial winners for Great Britain down the years, such as Jade Jones, Bianca Walkden and Lauren Williams.

She has been hooked on the sport – famous for its spectacular head kicks – since taking it up aged four and has twice come second in the British Taekwondo National Championships.

“When I received the funding from Aldi, it was just a sigh a relief because I didn’t have to stress about how to cope financially,” added Barnes, who is a member of Aldi’s Rising Stars, a programme that supports 20 young athletes by providing a financial award to help with training and competition costs, while also delivering personal development opportunities to many athletes through workshop sessions.

“I have money for food, I have money for equipment, and I have money for travelling and sometimes I stress about how much I want to put into food this month.

“Receiving food vouchers from Aldi puts me in the position where I don’t have to stress about food anymore, but what about equipment or my travel expenses?

“With that money, I’m like ‘oh, that is easy, there you go.’ Having that also means my parents do not have to spend their savings so I can do something I love.”

Aldi is the Official Supermarket Partner of Team GB and ParalympicsGB and have partnered with Team GB since 2015, ParalympicsGB since 2022 and will be supporting them through to Paris 2024