There were mixed emotions for England East Midland athletes Sarah Stanhope and Ellis Whyler at the UK School Games which was held in Cardiff this weekend.

Sarah Stanhope of The Giles School, Old Leake, made the final cut in the girls hammer, but threw below her best with a top throw of 42.42m to see her finish in seventh.

Only a week earlier, at the Peterborough City Games, Sarah threw a personal best of 45.77m to take gold. Sarah's throw at Peterborough of 45.77m moved her up the rankings to sixth in the UK for U17 girls hammer.

Ellis Whyler of Boston High School was in a similar position and jumped below par at UK school games to finish in 10th place in the girls long jump.

The week before, also in Peterborough, she jumped 5.15m to also take gold.

But the girls' spirits were not dampened for long and they had an excellent weekend, starting with the opening ceremony at Cardiff Bay where they were treated to an amazing laser and light show.

They enjoyed talks from top athletes such as Darren Campbell, Jamie Baulch and Denise Lewis. They also met Jason Gardener, Christian Malcom and Sally Gunnell.