Warm welcome for golden girl

Crowds turn out for Jessica Jane Applegate Credit: ITV Anglia

Scores of people gathered in Great Yarmouth to welcome home Paralympian swimming hero Jessica-Jane Applegate. She made an appearance on the balcony at Great Yarmouth town hall.Earlier a train with her name on the front wound its way round the seaside town so the golden girl could meet her public.

The teenager from nearby Belton set a Paralympic record in the women's S14 200m freestyle swimming final. She was the first British athlete from the controversial intellectually disabled classification to win gold at the Games. Jessica-Jane has Asperger's syndrome and doesn't like doing interviews so her grandparents spoke for her.

Yarmouth's mayor knew her golden chains couldn't compete with a shiny gold medal. But she said it was a fantastic excuse to throw a party.

Jessica-Jane's name is now on a roll of honour inside the town hall.

A permanent reminder of the Norfolk girl who made her town and her nation so proud.