Girls on course to be top sports stars (From Tewkesbury Admag)

Girls on course to be top sports stars

8:00am Thursday 7th February 2013 in Tewkesbury By Sarah Davies

THREE sporting stars of the future are hoping to be part of the legacy of London 2012.

Lucy Walton, Imogen Gloag and Sarah Ellis, who attend independent girls’ school Malvern St James, are fast making a name for themselves in the world of sport.

Four years ago, a friend gave 12-year-old Lucy some golf clubs and introduced her to junior coaching days with her local club.

In the past year alone, the Hanley Swan resident has won the Ladies County Golf Championships (Worcestershire), the Ladies Club Championships, the Independent Schools Golf Association’s National Girls competition and finished 3rd in the England Golf Girls Under 13 Championships.

She has also been selected as the youngest of only five girls from the Midlands to train as part of the England Golf Select Squad– just one tier below the performance squad.

Having been riding from the age of four, Imogen Gloag has had previous successes representing the British Eventing Central Region at Weston Park International Horse Trials in the U18 National Team Championship twice at the ages of 15 and 16.

In 2008 and 2009, she was part of the winning Heythrop Hunt Pony Club Team, winning the National Intermediate and Open Pony Club National Championships respectively at Draycott, and was again picked for the club’s Open Area team, winning both the team and individual places on her horse Brendonhill Doublet.

Kayaker Sarah was one of only two U14 girls selected for the U16 team of four representing Great Britain in the U16 events of the French Marathon Championships in October last year.

The 14-year-old from Pershore has been kayaking for three years and was inspired to start training by Olympian Andy Train.

For the past two years, Sarah has competed in the GB National Age Group Championships, winning bronze in the kayak singles event and gold in the kayak pairs at the UK National U14 Girls Marathon Championships in August, as well as bronze in the kayak singles, silver in the kayak pairs and gold in the kayak fours at the National U14 Sprint 500 metres Championships.

Patricia Woodhouse, headmistress at MSJ, said: “I am extremely proud of the many achievements of these girls.

“We work with the girls and their families to create a flexible timetable which ensures they can meet both their sporting and academic commitments.”