A SOUTH Somerset bobsleigh driver will be one of the oldest athletes at the inaugural Winter Youth Olympics – and has vowed to let it show by returning home from Austria with a medal to declare.

Olly Biddulph of Westonzoyland near Langport will turn 19 the day before the January 13 opening ceremony in Innsbruck, Austria, and ten days before he takes to the ice track with brakeman James Lelliott.

The former East Bridgwater School pupil will do so full of confidence having finished the four Winter Youth Olympic qualifying races back in November in Austria then Germany sixth, ninth, fifth and third. And with his elder status bringing both age and experience, Biddulph has been in the sport for 18 months, he is adamant a medal is well within their reach in Innsbruck.

"We are going to win a medal. Of course everyone says they want to win a medal but we believe we can because of the way we have been training and how hard we have been working," said Biddulph. "We have both put our heads together for this and we see no reason why we can't win a medal. We have knocked time off our best ever push start so we are confident.

"The start is so important and if you push quick at the top and get in the top six by the bottom you can be in the top three and we are pushing well. But we know positions can be decided by hundredths of a second and that practice makes perfect and we have to learn from our mistakes."

Biddulph will remain in Austria upon the completion of the first ever Winter Youth Olympics with the Junior World Championships beginning in the same venue almost immediately afterwards. And Biddulph believes a medal in his first competition can lead to a top-15 finish, if not better, second time around.

"The week after the Youth Olympics we have the Junior World Championships so we will stay out in Austria and that will be brilliant for me," she added. Hopefully I will be able to go out to USA afterwards but it all depends on sponsorship. Either way hopefully we can get a top three and then a top 12 or top 15 at the junior worlds."

THE British Olympic Association prepares and leads British athletes at the summer, winter and youth Olympic Games. It works in partnership with sport National Governing Bodies to enhance Olympic success and is responsible for championing the Olympic values. www.olympics.org.uk