TALENTED teenage athlete, Oldbury’s Iris Oliarnyk is the new number one ranked pentathlete in the country, for her age group, after a stunning performance at the English Schools National Finals.

Fifteen year old Iris not only won the overall competition with a haul of 3,314 points, she achieved personal best performances in three of the five events.

Her performance, beating 42 of the top pentathletes from England means she will gain her first England vest, representing the country against Scotland, Ireland and Wales at a competition to be held in Ireland in December.

Proud dad John Oliarnyki said: “Iris had an amazing day and came away winning the whole championship. We are so proud of her guts and determination.”

She is one of a number of young rising sports stars in Sandwell to be assisted through the borough council’s Gifted and Talented programme, which provides financial support of up to £500 to help them pursue their dreams.

Councillor Richard Marshall, cabinet member for leisure services and chairman of the Gifted and Talented awards board, said: “Congratulations to Iris.

“We help where we can to support our young athletes, achievements like this are down to Iris’s hard work and dedication, but also the commitment and support of her family.

“The level of results Iris is achieving puts her ahead of Jessica Ennis-Hill at this stage of her career, which is a phenomenal achievement in itself.

“But I hope that this is also a message to other young people in Sandwell who may be just staring out in sport. There are no limits to what you can achieve and we will help you get there.”