A 29-YEAR-OLD from Halesowen will make her fourth appearance in the Paralympics at the Tokyo games this year.

Jordanne Whiley has been named in the six-strong Paralympics GB wheelchair tennis squad.

The sports star made her Paralympic debut as a 16-year-old in Beijing in 2008, going on to claim bronze at at both London 2012 and Rio 2016.

Jordanne said: "At first I thought the extra year was a hindrance, but now I think it’s been a blessing.

“I definitely needed that extra year just to lose a bit more weight, get fitter and play some more matches."

After giving birth in 2018 to her son Jackson, Whiley believes the postponement of the Games served as a boost.

She added: "It would’ve been great if Jackson could have come out with me, but he’s going to be left at home with my mum now. It’s going to be tough – probably more so for me because he loves his nanny so much!

“I’m going to have set all my alarms to English times to make sure I speak to him once a day, but I’ll have my team around me so hopefully it’ll be alright.

“When you’re there you’re just really focused, and reaching the gold medal match is what I’m looking for. I’ve got two bronzes, so another colour would be nice!”

Whiley is one of over 1,000 athletes on UK Sport’s National Lottery-funded World Class Programme, which allows her to train full-time, access the world’s best coaches and benefit from pioneering technology, science and medical support.

National Lottery players have raised around £36 million each week for good causes.

To discover the positive impact playing the National Lottery has on sport at www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk and get involved by using the hashtags: #TNLAthletes #TracktoTokyo