Olympic 200 metres champion Andre De Grasse is among those to have received a grant from the "Athletes for Good" programme run by P&G ©Getty Images

Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic partner Procter & Gamble (P&G) is to award $24,000 (£19,500/€22,000) grants to 20 athletes who will use the cash to help charities they support.

The money will be paid as part of the "Athletes for Good" programme, which has been launched in the build-up to next year's Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris. 

More than 100 athletes applied for the funding in all with the 20 recipients chosen based on select criteria, including their passion for their chosen charities and how they personally impact them.

Among those chosen are Canada's Olympic 200 metres gold medallist Andre De Grasse and Scotland's Eilish McColgan, the 10,000m champion at last year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

The Andre De Grasse Family Foundation will now award six scholarships or create a fundraising event with the Canadian Olympic Foundation, while McColgan's grant will allow "Giving Back to Track" to expand free after-school clubs in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen and start a shoe and spike fund to source trainers for those who need them.

Other selected include American surfer Griffin Colapinto who supports "To Write Love on Her Arms" - a non-profit that helps young people struggling with depression, addiction, suicidal thoughts and self-injury.

Eilish McColgan will use her grant to give back to athletics in Scotland ©Getty Images
Eilish McColgan will use her grant to give back to athletics in Scotland ©Getty Images

Tennis stars Sloane Stephens of the United States and Marin Čilić of Croatia, both former US Open winners, will also receive grants.

Stephens will host summer tennis sessions for 100 children through her Foundation, while Čilić's organisation will build playgrounds and hold camps in Croatia.

P&G, the giant American household products company, will tell the stories of the Athletes for Good programme in the build-up to Paris 2024.

Other recipients include American rugby player Alena Olsen, French Para-triathlete Alexis Hanquinquant, British swimmer Amber Keegan, Puerto Rico decathlete Ayden Owens-Delerme, American runner Benjamin Blankenship, Italian Para-swimmer Carlotta Gilli, Spanish wheelchair tennis player Daniel Caverzaschi and American Para-athlete Ezra Frech.

They are joined by New Zealand hockey player Hugo Inglis, British rugby player James Farndale, American Para-triathlete Melissa Stockwell, Canadian hockey player Oliver Scholfied, British fencer Marcus Mepstead, Australian race walker Rhydian Cowley and Dutch judoka Sanne van Dijke.