Jolly Hockey Sticks

The 16-year-old Angmering School pupil, pictured, was delighted to be among only eight people to be picked from 30 hopefuls at trials held at Greenham Common, last month.

He said he had worked extremely hard for the trials and now hopes to make the team for the European Championships, coming up in September in Bussy, Switzerland.

Skater hockey is based on ice hockey but players wear roller blades instead of ice skates and play on a sports court.

It has been growing in popularity in England since it started about 15 years ago.

And this latest success is the icing on the cake for Kris, who already has a long list of sporting achievements to his name.

For starters, he has the distinction of becoming one of the top eight nationally for his age when he played for the Rockers a team for 12-15 year-olds during which time he won a National Allstar Award.

He has also played basketball for the Cobras on Saturday mornings as well as playing for the county, but Kris insists skater hockey is by far his favourite game.

Although Kris is studying for the Sports Academy Award, he feels he is most likely to follow a more academic path and go to university.

He would ideally like to study at a college with an ice hockey team, as this is the sport he would ultimately like to play.