Hundreds give Olympian surprise homecoming welcome

More than 500 people lined the streets to welcome the Olympic swimmer home

A town was adorned in bunting, Olympic rings and banners as fans lined the streets to give Olympian Matt Richards a surprise homecoming welcome.

More than 500 people gathered in Droitwich to greet the double-medal winning champion.

Among the crowd were his former swimming teachers as he was met with a warm round of applause on his return to his hometown.

"It's really touching when you see that many people turn out to support," the athlete said.

The athlete was not expecting such a warm welcome and described it as "really touching"

"It's quite hard when you're over there [in Paris] because you're in your own little bubble and often alone in the evenings, you forget just how many people are back home willing you on.

"It's quite heartwarming to come back and see how many people want to see you do well, so many youngsters out here with their swimming tops on is really nice to see that people are enjoying the water and inspired by what my team and I were doing."

The 21-year-old scooped a gold medal for the 4x200m freestyle relay and silver in the the 200m freestyle final.

At his second Olympic games, the athlete secured a gold and silver medal

He told BBC Hereford and Worcester: "Winning medals is really special and is what got me into the sport. But [also] inspiring the next generation and trying to help kids get into the water, whether that be to go on their own journey and win their own Olympic medals or whether it's so they can be safe and enjoy being in the sea on holiday.

"To have even the smallest of impact on one or two kids is really special to me and means the world."

With the international tournament out of the way, he is now preparing to get married in just over a week.

The town planned the surprise for the star