Alex Needham of Shelley took gold in the prestigious British Taekwondo Championships.
The 16-year-old (pictured) was among over 600 competitors at the Manchester Velodrome and this year went one better in his category after two successive silvers to last-gasp scores.
Needham – also delighted with his GCSE results! – commented: “It feels great to be British Champion.
“I worked hard on my long game this summer and it really paid off.
“Now, I am already concentrating on the Croatian A Class Open in November.”
The Manchester event was the largest and most successful Championships to date.
The Shelley College student trained with the Great Britain squad in Manchester, with Premier Taekwondo in Huddersfield and with his own club, Team Ultimate, in Doncaster.
Needham was determined throughout to go one place further than the previous two years and, after receiving a bye in the first round, he was quickly into irresistible form against a London-based competitor in the quarter-finals.
When the fight was stopped at the end of round two, Needham was 22-0 ahead.
After progressing through the semi-finals 16-2, he came up against a Doncaster opponent who is also part of the GB Development squad.
It mattered not as Needham continued his impressive form and, after several headshots, the fight was stopped with the score at 16-2.
