Leicester archer Megan Havers, 16, is the star of Team GB after learning the ropes at the holiday park

Leicester archery sensation Megan Havers learned the sport aged just seven during a family holiday at a caravan park in Haven.

Last Wednesday, aged just 16, Havers scored her first darts at the Paris 2024 Olympics, showing an impressive rise from her maiden session as a youngster to competing on the world’s biggest sporting stage. In the morning standings, she was ranked 49th out of 64 competitors – a commendable achievement alongside acclaimed Korean archer Lim Sihyeon, who broke a world record in the same session.

Havers’ journey from holiday fun to Olympic competition exemplifies the exciting allure and true spirit of the Olympic Games. First discovering her talent at Haven, the young prodigy told In Your Area: “The instructor said I was a natural and I ended up beating my grandfather in a competition.”

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She added: “For my eighth birthday I got a beginner’s course, bought my first bow a few months later and eventually started representing my county, region and then country. I went to my first senior team in March this year! “

Shortly after making her mark on the senior team, Havers has set her sights on her maiden Olympic challenge – looking forward to facing the next knockout round on Tuesday and taking part in the team match against Germany on Sunday, the Mirror reports.

Speaking to the PA, a delighted Havers said: “I can officially say I’m an Olympian now. It’s really cool to say. I’ve got a lot more Olympics in me, I hope.” Speaking about strategy, she added: “I like to shoot first so I don’t get in my head. That’s my rule. I came to this course today and I was calm and excited to shoot, but then my first arrow, M -I felt kind of nervous, I was like, oh, this is my first shot at the Olympics, but it calmed down as we went along.

Havers joins two other Britons who competed on Wednesday. Completing the squad are Tokyo 2020 participant Bryony Pitman and newcomer Penny Healey.