The organisation said the grants are awarded at a time where communities around the world continue to feel the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The grants are aimed at supporting Olympians who are seeking to create a positive impact in their communities as role models and leaders.

Each project, developed in partnership with the local National Olympians Association, will receive $5,000 (£4,000/€4,400) in funding to support the delivery.

The WOA has confirmed their service to Olympians grants have been awarded to projects in Zambia, Puerto Rico and Singapore.

Zambia’s Refugee, Youth and Street Kids Sports programme is set to train Olympians on how to lead effective projects that engage refugees and street children in sport, while Puerto Rico’s Education for Olympians project will help Olympians during their competitive careers and make them aware of opportunities and prepare them for retirement.

A website for Singapore’s Olympians is being established with the aim of creating a live resource to tell the stories of Olympians to inspire future generations.

Six service to society grants have also been awarded, including to Angola’s Basketball for Street Boys programme, which will continue to engage street children in Luanda through sport.

The initiative aims to provide them a sense of home life and to spend time with Olympians to share their values.

Botswana’s Sports Day will provide opportunities for young people to get involved in sport and promote education, while Costa Rica’s Cycling to School aims to introduce cycling into communities for children that are often forced to walk long distances to go to school.

It is hoped the project will reduce the number of children that drop out of school.

United States’ Education Through Sports programme aims to help the lives of girls in Guinea by providing opportunities to play competitive recreational activities against girls from other schools.

Greece’s Olympic Green Values will run a series of workshops to promote Olympic and sporting values and environmental protection to young people, with New Zealand’s Rotorua Trust aiming to mentor and develop potential Olympians to perform on the world stage and inspire future generations in the community.

"We are delighted that we can support the inspirational work of Olympians across the world," said Joël Bouzou, WOA President.

"The challenges that many communities have already faced this year make the work that these projects will be carrying out even more essential.

"WOA supports Olympian-led projects that make a real difference to people’s lives.

"We are pleased to be able to help bring these inspirational initiatives to life."

The WOA grants programme was first launched in 2016 and has supported more than 50 Olympian-led projects.

These projects have either delivered long-term positive legacies within communities or has helped to enable the ongoing development of Olympians.

The WOA grants programme has previously supported a diverse range of Olympian-led social, environmental and educational programmes.

This includes backing drowning prevention programmes in India and Lithuania, bringing the community together to protect the environment in Moldova, sending Olympians back to school in Malaysia and inspiring the next generation in Nigeria by engaging children in quality education and sport.