'This is just the beginning,' says teen Olympian

Phoebe Gill, 17,

Teenage Olympian Phoebe Gill said competing at the Paris Games was the "best experience" and just the beginning of her career.

The 17-year-old, from St Albans, made it to the semi-finals of the 800m as the youngest member of Team GB's athletics squad.

She said the support she received from her athletics club had "brought me to where I am today".

"To see them come together to welcome me home is just very overwhelming, the fact this journey has come to a close now and I can officially call myself an Olympian," she said.

"Having my first Olympics at 17 has been the best experience I think any young athlete could ask for.

"Going out into that crowd you never know what to expect or how [you're] going to react but I was so proud of myself that I could conquer that fear and run in front of all of those people.

"Now I know how to approach this and I hope for greater things coming into the next Olympics."

Phoebe Gill reached the semi-final of the 800m at the Paris Olympics and came fourth

Ms Gill came in fourth in her semi-final heat, leading to an agonising wait to see if she would qualify for the Olympic final in a fastest loser spot.

"I know a lot of people were comforting me because I was bawling my eyes out, I was sitting in the fastest loser bit and I knew I would be kicked out," she said.

"So when I was overcome with these emotions, it was just a release of the build up that this journey has been, everything that has come up to this moment."

She said it had been a "stress reliever" and she was "immensely proud of myself" after battling performance anxiety, nerves and sleepless nights.

"I do hope this is just the start of my career," Ms Gill said.

Ms Gill's coach, Deborah Steer, is cheered back to St Albans with the teenage star

Her coach, Deborah Steer, said it was "emotional and a bit overwhelming" returning to the club where it all began in 2017.

Reflecting on the Olympics experience, she said the duo had been on a "learning journey".

"We’d never been to a major, senior championship before, so we had a lot to learn but it was very professionally organised," she said.

"Paris was amazing and Phoebe was exceptional.

"She actually said in one of her post race interviews, 'now I can do this, I feel I can do anything'.

"Getting that through to a young adult of 17 means the world is your oyster," she added.