Cyclist Fred Wright and sprinter Daryll Neita from London receive £2,000 SportsAid Awards from Elton John

Cyclist Fred Wright from Herne Hill and sprinter Daryll Neita from Lee, both 17, received a £2,000 boost to their sporting careers on Saturday when Sir Elton John CBE handed each of them a cheque from SportsAid to help them achieve their Olympic ambitions.

The donations are some of the first to come from SportsAid's new Elton John Sports Fund after the charity raised more than £300,000 at an acclaimed concert by the artist at Stoke Park in Buckinghamshire on Saturday June 28.

The fund will support some of Britain's brightest prospects from more than 50 sports by providing annual awards of £2,000 to help with essential training and competition costs.

"I never in my life thought I would meet Elton John," Daryll said. "It was a special night and so good for him to have such an interest in my sport and my career and to be able to share that with him. It was also great that he wanted to donate his time and support to us as the next generation and to see that he has such a genuine interest in our future.

"I feel really privileged," she added. "Being nominated for this award I feel like 'wow', I've done something to impress other people who have now taken an interest in my career, so I feel really lucky to be one of the first five. It's amazing to be part of the first selection of athletes and to be recognised in this way. Having this extra cash is a godsend."

Fred said, "The support will really help to take a lot of the pressure off my parents who have to pay for a lot of kit and travel. In a sport like cycling there's a lot of kit involved and the cost of the bikes of course, so it will help a lot. In a few weeks I'm travelling up to the national track championships and it will definitely help with that and all the travel costs."

He added, "When I heard I'd been selected for the award and that there were only five of us I was quite shocked because I thought there would be more but it is a real privilege to be one of them and that made speaking to Elton all the more special."

Elton John agreed, saying, "It was a special moment to meet Fred, Daryll and the other athletes. Their successes are already very impressive, and with a little extra help and recognition who knows what they could go on to achieve. They are the reason we were all at Stoke Park for the concert. Working with SportsAid, we know we are helping the right athletes at the right time."

Showing their support at the concert were many of SportsAid's former beneficiaries including Steve Redgrave, Katherine Grainger, Keri-Anne Payne, Ade Adepitan, Mark Foster, Derek Redmond, Gail Emms, Duncan Goodhew, Danny Crates, Anna Watkins, Mark Hunter, Zac Purchase, Richard Hounslow, Sarah Winckless, Shelley Rudman, Heather Stanning, Karen Pickering, Beth Rodford and Steve Williams.

Speaking to some of the guests before the concert Zac Purchase said, "I remember receiving my first SportsAid Award as a young athlete and it is one of those wonderful moments in life when someone turns around to you and says, 'you know what, we think you could be good'. And now you look back at SportsAid's alumni and how many of them go on to achieve great things, and it just goes to show that SportsAid gets it so right when selecting which athletes to support, giving them the confidence boost to go out and perform even better in the future."

Towards the end of a superb performance that included the classics Your Song, Rocket Man and Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me, Elton John said to the crowd of 5,000 fans, "Thanks to your support we will be able to fund young athletes for the next eight years to help make their dreams come true. Thank you!"