STRETFORD cyclist Leanne Hall admitted she had to pinch herself in amazement after riding away with two medals on her Sainsbury’s School Games debut.

Hall, who acts as a pilot for visually impaired cyclist Alice Hayden, travelled to Manchester last weekend to take part in the annual multi-sport event alongside more than 1,600 other talented school children.

It proved to be a packed schedule for the duo who took part in no fewer than five para-cycling events, climbing the podium on two occasions.

Their best result came in the keirin where they picked up silver to add to their earlier bronze in the flying 200m.

And with a fourth place coming in the 500m time trial as well as two fifth-place finishes in the 1000m time trial and 500m time trial, Stretford Grammar School pupil Hall insisted it had been a great experience alongside close friend Hayden.

“This was my first Sainsbury’s School Games so to come away with a medal was just phenomenal and something I can hardly believe really,” said the 14-year-old.

“The atmosphere and the way people cheer you on is incredible and Alice is an amazing cyclist so she is great to have. The amount of work that we have both been doing is amazing.

“Training has been going really well so we were full of confidence for the races. We’ve been riding together for about a year now and I think we’re showing that we have a good partnership going.

“I really enjoy riding with her and it’s great that we can share the moments together.”

Despite her achievements in Manchester however, Hall has no intentions of resting on her laurels, with an appearance at a Paralympics her ultimate target.

“I watched the Paralympics in 2012 and they really inspired me to try and push on with my sport and keep training hard,” she added.

“All the athletes were amazing and I’d like to compete at a Paralympics in the future if I could reach that level. That’s my dream and I’m going to keep working towards that.”

The Sainsbury’s 2014 School Games, which is supported by National Lottery funding from Sport England and delivered by the Youth Sport Trust, was held in venues across Manchester from 4-7 September 2014. Visit 2014schoolgames.com for more information.