![Thomas Cunningham in Rockhampton in September, 2022. Picture supplied. Thomas Cunningham in Rockhampton in September, 2022. Picture supplied.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/vQaZ3anPUuND9nFzbQxA35/4bbf5ebd-4444-4324-9850-7e2ec6d1a1fd.jpg/r0_0_1536_2048_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
There's a young star in the making.
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Fourteen-year-old Thomas Cunningham has a bright future in the sport of motocross and his journey was given a $200 boost thanks to the Ray Harvey Sports Foundation.
The Trinity Catholic College student recently went to Rockhampton in Queensland to compete in the Australian Titles in motocross.
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Although he had a few crashes in his qualifying runs and didn't finish on the podium, it was all about gaining experience.
"He's never done an Australian Titles before, so he just wanted to see what it was like and what was involved," Thomas' mother Rebecca Cunningham said.
"This year, he'll be going up against kids aged up to 16 when he takes part in the Sunshine State Series in Queensland and then the NSW State Titles."
Thomas, who has been in the sport for six years already, loved riding motorbikes as a kid, so his choice of sport came as no surprise.
"His father's cousins were into it, but he's just always loved motorbikes," Rebecca said.
"We got him one when he was two and a half-years-old and he hasn't stopped riding since."
There is a greater chance of injury in motocross compared to some sports and Rebecca said she understood the risks associated with motocross.
"It does worry me, but you learn that it's just a part of the sport," she said.
"However, you do everything you can to prevent those risks from happening.
"You train a lot, learn the right techniques to eliminate mistakes and wear all the protective gear."
Thomas' goal is to move into supercross as he gets older and Rebecca said there was a chance he would achieve it by the end of this year.
He was one of 15 youngsters to receive funding from the Ray Harvey Sports Foundation at the Civic Center in December, 2022.
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