St Paul's Lodge

 

Sixteen-year-old Charlie Cooper is the son of Andy Cooper, PMetGStwd, currently Master of the Athenian Lodge, the London Football Lodge under the Special Interest Lodges programme. 

Charlie first skied at just two years old in Switzerland with his family. He was approached by GBX (now Inspire Snowsports, the ski and snowboard academy that focuses on developing high-performing athletes in the UK) at the age of eight, while practicing at a snow centre in the UK. After two trials, he was accepted into the first-ever SnowSport England youth ski cross programme. 

Since then, he has excelled as part of various clubs and organisations. He won the English National Ski Cross Championships at aged 11. This milestone became the catalyst for his ski cross career, culminating in him representing Team GB at the Winter Youth Olympics in Gangwon, South Korea in January 2024 at the age of 16.

Charlie attends training camps overseas in countries such as Norway, Austria and Switzerland. His favourite memories are living for 3 weeks in the Olympic Village in South Korea.

“Ski cross is, in a way, still classed as an elitist and privileged sport, so it’s more difficult to get funding, and the costs associated with it are very high,” says Andy.

Andy was scrolling through Instagram one day when he saw a post about the TalentAid scheme from the Masonic Charitable Foundation. After looking into it, he decided to apply, and his application was later accepted.

“We have been able to support Charlie’s training and equipment costs, which include skis, boots, helmets, back protectors, bags, and more. And since he’s still growing, his equipment regularly needs updating. They also assist with the international travel costs required for his training camps and competitions.”

“We spent eight years without any funding and had to have discussions about how we could afford for him to move forward with the sport. We thought about asking grandparents but we needed much more support than that. We would have had to cut back on Charlie’s training by 85%, and would have to focus funds on races. But in any sport, there’s no point in turning up to the races without the necessary training, so the MCF paying for Charlie’s training has been incredibly helpful. I really don’t think he could compete at international level without the funding.”

This support was crucial in Charlie being able to attend the Winter Youth Olympics. He says, “Competing at the Winter Youth Olympics was amazing. The atmosphere was intense a lot of the time. Being a professional at such a young age is so cool because I’ve gotten to meet people from all over the world. I’ve made loads of good connections and had amazing opportunities.”

“Awareness of the programme is really important”, says Andy. “I wouldn’t have known about TalentAid if I hadn’t seen the MCF’s Instagram post about it, so I want to spread the word. I have already recommended other people to the service, including someone who skis with Charlie who is also a relative of a Freemason.” 

Charlie adds, “I didn’t used to understand the money side of things, but now I’m 16 and I know how hard it has been for Mum and Dad, so I’m really grateful.”

Charlie has recently joined a specialist Sports College, where his talents in ski cross are being fully encouraged and nurtured; and the flexible hours enable him to train abroad when he needs to. We wish him the best of luck in his future! 

TalentAid helps the children and grandchildren of Freemasons who are exceptionally talented in music, sport or the performing arts. The TalentAid scheme will re-open for applications in January 2026. Find out more at the MCF’s website.

 

---

This article is part of the Arena Magazine Issue 58 – Summer 2025 edition.
Arena Magazine is the official online magazine of the London Freemasons – Metropolitan Grand Lodge and Metropolitan Grand Chapter of London.

Read more articles in Arena Issue 58 here.

Get Arena stories direct to your phone with the Arena App, available for Apple and Android smartphones here: