Alnwick teenager on the crest of a wave after competing in waterskiing nationals

Anna Morris specialises in slalom skiing and competed at the British Waterski Nationals in Oxfordshire.

She placed fifth in the Under 17 Girls division and 12th in the Women’s Open category.

The 17-year-old, who is studying for A-Levels in History, Philosophy and Biology at Dame Allan’s Schools, in Newcastle, trains at weekends at CN Watersports, Pine Lake, Lancashire.

She started slalom skiing in 2018 at Merlin Brae Waterski Club, on Kielder reservoir.

“I thoroughly enjoy waterskiing and hope to improve further over the coming year, and continue skiing when I go to university,” said Anna, who is in Year 13 at Dame Allan’s Sixth Form in Fenham.

“It's really hard to describe the feeling of waterskiing but when you hit the right rhythm it just feels amazing, like freedom."

Anna is one of a number of teenagers at Dame Allan’s to have had success in sport over recent months.

Charlie Smith, from South Shields, has been asked to train with the England Rugby under 18s squad following a great season with the Newcastle Falcons Academy and success with his club, Novocastrians RFU.

Basketball star and Year 12 student Nicholas Archbold, from Gateshead, who plays with the Newcastle Eagles Academy, has been selected to play in the Elite Academy Basketball League (EABL).

Will Scott, principal at Dame Allan’s Schools, said: “Sport plays such a pivotal role in our schools and we have seen a welcome return to competitive fixtures for all our students.

“Anna, Charlie and Nicholas have taken their love of sport and natural talents to the next level and shown a commitment that is worthy of success.”

Slalom skiing is when you only use one ski. The ski is known as the slalom, and it has two bindings so you can put one foot in front and one in the back.

It involves a multi-buoy course that the skier must go around in order to complete the pass. Every consecutive pass is harder than the pass before it. When a pass is completed, the boat is sped up by 2mph until the maximum speed has been reached for the division.

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