A YOUNG kayaker from Eaton Bray has been selected to be a torchbearer as part of the Olympic celebrations this summer.
Charlotte Ellis, 18, a member of Tiddenfoot Canoe Club, will carry the torch through Luton on July 9.
Charlotte, of Bower Close, said: “I was quite honoured. I didn’t expect it at all.
Charlotte’s grandmother Gillian Ladd nominated her for the honour.
Charlotte said: “I didn’t know she had nominated me until I got the phonecall. My family are very proud.”
A keen sports enthusiast, Charlotte has been kayaking for about five years, and trains on the Grand Union canal.
She said: “I originally got into dance and gymnastics but wanted to do something different. I don’t think you can get much more different than kayaking.”
“I enter a lot of competitions, a lot of nationals, and obviously one day I would love to compete at the Olympics.
“It’s something I think everyone would like to do.”
Charlotte, a Bletchley College student, managed to snap up tickets to watch kayaking intt the Lee Valley White Water Centre at London 2012.
She said: “It was the luck of the draw really.”
“I’m excited for watching the foreign guys racing against our guys.
“I’ve heard of them, but never seen them compete.”
Charlotte said of her torchbearing honour: “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opprtunity.”
