KATE HOLMES says she now has the belief that she can one day play hockey at the Olympic Games, following a training camp at Loughborough University last week.
The 18-year-old from Leatherhead was selected as one of seven youngsters from Surrey to attend the Youth Sport Trust's four-day National Talent Camp, which aimed to inspire young athletes on their journey towards elite level sport.
And the Surbiton Hockey Club player says she feels it has done just that, adding that it was a great experience to meet like-minded athletes from other sports.
She said: "It was really good fun and it was very helpful.
"It was the perfect opportunity to learn what it takes to be the best and it has taught me to believe in myself a bit more.
"The camp has given me the belief that if I train hard and give everything I can, then maybe it is not a crazy dream and maybe one day I can go to the Olympics."
Holmes said that meeting Ashleigh Ball - one of Team GB's bronze medal winning hockey stars from London 2012 - was a fantastic opportunity, adding that she helped all 12 of the hockey players at the camp.
"She was so down to earth," said Holmes, who attends the City of London Freeman's College.
"And she really wanted to help us - she gave us some great advice and it was really good to spend some time with her."
Holmes added that the camp was tough, with the athletes getting up at 6am each morning for circuit training.
However, she said it was good to try different sports and gain an insight into how other athletes train and hone their skills.
"We tried volleyball and we got to teach some canoeists how to play hockey, which was good fun," she said.
"We all shared our experiences and it was interesting to see how we all had similar goals and different ways of getting there."
And Holmes says she will take away three key themes from the camp - honesty, humility and hunger - as she bids to make the England U21 squad for next summer's Junior World Cup.
She said: "I will have to keep training hard and hopefully I can push for selection for that.
"I also want to try and break into the first team at Surbiton for some matches and they are my short term goals.
"Longer term, I still have the ambition to play at an Olympic Games and I now have that belief that it might be possible."
