The School Games National Finals is a biennial four-day multi-sport event for young athletes of school age and is funded by Sport England National Lottery Funding and backed by all the Home Country Sports Councils and UK Sport.
Competing out of Bournemouth BMX, Phillips, 15, had four medals to show for himself come the end of the Saturday session, winning individual gold in flat skills and individual bronze in flat course, as well as team bronze in strength and conditioning and team silver in flat skills representing the South.
Competing in front of a lively crowd, it was all business for Phillips, who said: “I’m pretty happy. Working hard, doing what I do. It’s basic skills you’ve got to do on and off the track, and it’s just about putting it all together.
“There was quite a lot of pressure, with coaches, friends, family all watching, so just to do it now is pretty good.
“To overcome that pressure is about keeping calm, doing what I do and giving it my best. It feels great to win.”
Held at the outstanding sporting facilities of Loughborough University, this year’s School Games National Finals were the 16th since the inaugural event in Glasgow in 2006 and took place as part of an amazing summer of sport including the EUROs and the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The event has a history of breeding sporting superstars, with former participants at the event including Team GB worldbeaters Katerina Johnson-Thompson, Keely Hodgkinson, and Josh Kerr.
Eager to live out his own Olympic dreams down the line, Phillips will use his School Games National Finals triumph to further inspire him towards the biggest stage of them all.
“This will push me on and hopefully I can get to where I want to,” he added. “I’m dreaming of the Olympics, but I’ve got to keep going. Brisbane 2032, hopefully.”
The School Games National Finals is a biennial four-day multisport event for young athletes of school age and is funded by Sport England National Lottery Funding and backed by all the Home Country Sports Councils and UK Sport.