Carlisle-born teenage athlete Danny Gracie admits he is looking forward to representing Scotland at next month’s Schools International Athletic Board (SIAB) meeting.

Gracie, 16, is one of three students from Annan Academy to have been selected alongside Hannah Garrett and Finlay Waugh for the competition which will be held in Swansea on July 20.

The youngster received confirmation of his selection to represent Scotland in both the hammer and the discus after he competed in the Scottish Schools Championships at Grangemouth on June 8 and won in both events, having also competed at the SIAB meeting in 2018.

This season, Gracie, who trains three times a week with coach John Little at the Sheepmount Stadium, has competed in five competitions and a total of 14 events, in which he has achieved 13 firsts and one second-placed finish.

“I’m very happy with the way my season started,” he said. “I feel like I’m making good progress every time I compete.

“It was a huge honour to compete for my country last year and I’m delighted to be able to wear the Scotland vest again this year.

“It goes without saying that a significant amount of my success is due to the support and coaching provided to me by my coach, John Little.”

Coach Little added: “Danny gained some experience of this meeting last year and is fairly hopeful of a podium finish in the hammer event this year.”

So far this year, Gracie has improved his best in the hammer to 58.25m and in the discus to 42.54m.