Boroughbridge tennis ace Laura Gilbert has become a member of the National Junior Squad and among the country's top 10 youngsters in her age group.
Her potential was spotted on a tennis camp at Boroughbridge Leisure Centre and was recommended to take the sport more seriously at Ripon Tennis Centre.
There she was coached to success by professional Brent Parker, a former Durham and Cleveland County player.
And when he moved to Sunderland for a new coaching job 11-year-old Laura, a pupil at Ripon Grammar School, went with him. Now a third move for Parker to Cheadle in Cheshire means she makes regular
177-mile round trips for special coaching.
She recently won the Doncaster Junior Open, finished runner-up in the National Under 12 Grand Prix in Birmingham and helped Sheffield-based Abbeydale win the national under-11 team championship.
Updated: 11:58 Tuesday, December 11, 2001
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