Seven athletes from Northumberland have been selected to compete in the 2021 School Games National Finals.

The event welcomes talented young athletes at Loughborough University from September 2 to 5.

Three of the athletes are from Hexham and will be competing in different events.

For the triathlon, competing for Hexham, there is Jess Sails, 16, Harry Courtney, 16, Ralph Robson. Competing in athletics for Ponteland is Zak Old, 16.

The School Games National Finals will be the first multi-sport event for young athletes following the lifting of lockdown restrictions.

The event will celebrate the athletes’ achievements in working hard to maintain training and motivation over the last year and a half of restrictions.

Over 1,300 athletes will compete across 10 sports at the School Games, four of which include disability disciplines.

The event will give many young people, across a variety of different sports, an experience of high-level competition in a multi-sport environment similar to an Olympic or Paralympic Games.

The seven young athletes will be following in the footsteps of some of Britain’s biggest sporting stars who have competed at the event before going on to senior international success.

Alumni who competed at Tokyo 2020 include Adam Peaty, Kathleen Dawson, Alex Yee, Amelie Morgan, and more!

At the event the athletes will experience the excitement of competing at the highest level. They will live in a dedicated Athletes’ Village on the Loughborough University campus, take part in the School Games ceremony, and have their performance livestreamed for spectators via the Youth Sport Trust YouTube channel.

“The School Games National Finals provide a great experience for talented young athletes,” says Ali Oliver MBE, Chief Executive Officer of the Youth Sport Trust.

Spectators can watch the event on Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/youthsporttrust