WESTCLIFF High School for Girls pupils were put through their paces when British Olympian Jeanette Kwakye dropped in to work with some of the school’s brightest athletes.

The 33-year-old, who represented Great Britain in the Beijing Olympic 100m final and was British number one back in 2012 was named as the ‘Athlete Mentor’ to the school for a second time as part of the Sky Sports Living for Sport programme.

The programme was set up with the aim of using athletes’ experiences to inspire the next generation of sporting superstars, and that was the case at Westcliff High School for Girls.

Across the two days, Kwakye spoke to students about overcoming difficulties and balancing school work commitments with training, while students also completed team building and self-esteem games along with a master class in running technique.

And the students said her advice proved invaluable.

“Jeanette was a real inspiration and made me more determined to strive in life,” said Sophie Loveday. “She taught me that trying 100 per cent in any walk of life is the most important thing. I feel more determined than ever to do my best in everything I do.”

“Jeanette taught me never to look at the rankings before a race because you can always exceed your expectations and come out of it higher than you were expected,” added Zara Leaver. “She also taught me the importance of teamwork and that if you are working as a team you never blame anyone if something goes wrong. You win as a team so you lose as a team.”

Kwakye even travelled with the school’s Athletics Squad to the Borough Athletics Finals in Basildon where she provided expert coaching, and Head of Department Ruth Wilkin said it was a great experience.

“For many of our girls this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet and work with a professional athlete and role model,” said Mrs Wilkin. “Jeanette has inspired girls to want to achieve beyond what they previously thought were their limits and to aim higher than they did before. She has given them the inspiration to persevere and to enjoy sport even more and fostered the sense of inclusion that we as a department encourage in all of our students.”