A HUDDERSFIELD boy is heading for the Philippines to represent Britain in a martial arts contest.
Jacob Stewart, 11, of Lowerhouses, is part of the Great Britain team competing in the eskrima world championships.
Jacob will fly out to Cebu City with dad Robert on June 15.
But without the support of local businesses and friends and teachers at Royds Hall High School, the trip would have been impossible.
Jacob had to raise £3,000 to compete in the championships.
Bradford firm Ebor Asset Management, PDA at Huddersfield and Marshalls of Huddersfield all sponsored Jacob. Sportswear firm Reebok made a donation to his appeal.
Royds Hall High also raised £582 for Jacob.
His form tutor Sarah Anderson arranged for the proceeds of a concert - planned to raise cash for the school - to go to Jacob instead.
A non-uniform day was also held.
Robert said: "They backed him totally. They just diverted the money. They have been brilliant."
Fundraising appeals are becoming a regular occurrence for Jacob and his family. He has competed for Britain in eskrima four times, including last year's European championships in Poland.
Eskrima is a form of martial art which started in the Philippines.
Jacob practices a rapid form of the art and is the only person under 16 in Britain to have a black belt in the discipline.
He also has a black belt in karate.
Jacob has a medical condition to thank for helping him discover his martial arts talent.
He suffers from dyspraxia, which affects his co-ordination, speech and spatial awareness.
Sports like football and tennis proved a problem, so at the age of five, Jacob tried karate.
One day, after a karate class, Jacob saw an eskrima class and wanted to have a go.
He proved so good that he has now been on the British team four times. He is the only team member aged under 16.
