Finlay, 23, lives in Camberley and has represented both Great Britain and Scotland in judo at competitions across Europe in the -66kg category – including the Commonwealth Games in 2022 where he won a silver medal.
This year, Finlay has continued his success, winning silver at the Riga Senior European Cup in Latvia before heading to Croatia to win bronze at the Dubrovnik Senior European Cup in April.
Setting his sights to the future, Finlay is now working towards the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow – with an even bigger target of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. He has a busy calendar for the rest of the year, with training camps in Hungary and Japan alongside his usual work at the Camberley Judo Club.
But all of this would be much harder to accomplish if not for his sponsorship by Specsavers Camberley, which has been in place since the start of 2024 and was recently renewed for 2025.
Finlay says: ‘Sponsorships are hard to come by in judo, so the store’s support has been great. The store previously sponsored a fellow judoka, Jessie Edwards, and when she retired, I took on the sponsorship.
‘I was incredibly grateful as in judo, it’s not that financially rewarding. It’s not something you can usually do full-time because of the expenses.
‘The money itself covers my training fees – which takes a lot of pressure off my monthly outgoings.
‘In 2024, I injured my elbow, and the team at Specsavers were incredibly supportive. They kept in touch with me throughout and covering my training fees massively helped my rehabilitation and getting back to full fitness.’
Finlay has been practicing judo since he was five years old, first becoming enamoured with the sport in his hometown of Cupar in Fife. When he first visited the local judo club, he found it was run by former Olympian John Buchanan.
John, who took part in the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, ignited a passion in Finlay to follow in his footsteps – which included being five-time British Champion and picking up bronze medals at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games.
He continued learning from John throughout his childhood and decided to leave school at 16 to train full-time – moving to Camberley in 2020 to train at one of the country’s best judo clubs.
With both the Olympics and Commonwealth Games on the horizon, Finlay is working as hard as he can to go for gold – in part thanks to the support of his local Specsavers.
He adds: ‘Training for competitions takes a lot of time and effort, and Specsavers helps me to do this full time. I’m already prepping for next year’s Commonwealth Games and aiming for a shot at Team GB in the LA Olympics in 2028.’
Matthew Stiff, retail director at Specsavers Camberley, which is locally owned and run, says: ‘Finlay is an exceptional athlete, and we are delighted to see him go from strength to strength – in part due to our support and sponsorship.
‘We have had a long-running agreement with Camberley Judo Club to support them whenever we can, especially through directly sponsoring budding and established talents at the club.
‘We wish Finlay all the best in his training, and hope to see him in Glasgow in 2026 and Los Angeles in 2028.’
For more information about Specsavers Camberley, call 01276 677686 or go online at https://www.specsavers.co.uk/stores/camberley