Ones to Watch: Guernsey track star aiming for Commonwealth Games

A Guernsey teenager is taking inspiration from other island athletes in the run-up to next year's NatWest International Island Games.

17-year-old Kate Bain has been running for the last decade and uses Channel Island success as motivation in competitions.

Kate said: "I was lucky enough to see the Birmingham Commonwealth Games this year and it was just an amazing experience.

"So hopefully I can experience that for myself, see if I can get to a point where I am representing the nation, that would be amazing - it would be a dream."

During the Summer, Guernsey athlete Alastair Chalmers was the first Channel Islander to win a Commonwealth medal in Athletics.

The prospect of attending her first games on home soil is exciting to the young runner.

Kate said: "I'm really looking forward to it.

"I've seen some photos from the 2003 home games and the crowds back then were incredible, so I can't imagine what it's like to have a home crowd behind you on the final straight."

Guernsey Athletics coach, Tom Druce has been working with Kate to make her dreams a reality, with the possibility of strong results across the board.

He said: "We're already looking at the island games as being a very strong medal shot - not to put the pressure on too much.

"I know all the kids, all the athletes, Kate's age are going to have an amazing experience.

"Beyond that, the Commonwealth Games is something which is really in the focus at the moment, obviously with what Alastair achieved this year.

"Hopefully this is something that is going to act as a real driver to the likes of Kate, who really reach out at the idea of the next one."

Despite her love for running now, Kate did not always enjoy time on the track.

Kate said: "I did my first cross country when I was seven and I said I'd never do it again, it was awful.

"But 10 years later, here I am, so something must of stuck.

"I think it was just that I was quite competitive because I didn't do too well, obviously it was my first race, but something made me want to finish the next one.

"Each time I went, I got more and more invested in it, until it just became part of my life."

Kate is now training ahead of the 2023 NatWest International Island Games taking place next summer.