BUDDING rugby stars from Worcester and Malvern have been called up to England Midlands’ Rugby 7s squad for this month’s School Games National Finals.
Deanna Clarke, who is a student at Nunnery Wood High School and a Worcester Rugby Football Club player, will compete against the UK’s most talented school-age athletes at Loughborough University, from Thursday, August 31 to Sunday, September 3.
Malvern’s Laura Thomas, a student at Hanley Castle High School and a fellow member of Worceter RFC, will also represent her county.
Laura already has an impressive record of success, being a part of the under-18 England Talent Development Group.
The pair will live in a dedicated ‘Athletes Village’ on the university’s campus, take part in an opening ceremony and perform in front of huge crowds at the event, which will bring together around 1,600 students to compete across 12 sports.
They will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of some of Britain’s biggest sporting stars who have competed at the School Games before going on to senior international success.
Of the 382 athletes who represented Team GB at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, 56 had competed at a School Games.
Previous competitors include Paralympic champions Hannah Cockroft, Ellie Simmonds and Jonnie Peacock, Olympic swimming champion Adam Peaty, heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson and GB world spint relay champion Adam Gemili.
The four-day event is supported by National Lottery funding from Sport England and delivered by the Youth Sport Trust.
Ali Oliver, chief executive officer of the Youth Sport Trust, said: “The School Games National Finals provide a great opportunity for talented young athletes like Deanna.
Competitors get a real taste of what it’s like to be part of a world-class sporting event and it’s a great way to see our future sporting champions in action.”