The School Games National Finals is a biennial four-day multi-sport event for young athletes of school age, funded by Sport England National Lottery Funding and backed by all the Home Country Sports Councils and UK Sport.
Hoping to follow in the footsteps of triathlon gold medallist Alex Yee, who also started out competing at the School Games National Finals, Wadey, 16, more than rose to the occasion on the elite stage, charging ahead in the run before holding his lead in the crucial cycle.
Pushed on by the bumper crowd in attendance, Wadey said: “I heard my name quite a bit, so that really helped to push me on.
“My family and grandparents came here, so it was nice to hear my name a lot. Normally it’s only my dad and that’s still alright, but it’s definitely much nicer when there’s more people, so you feel the support.
“I just want to see how far I can go, just trying my best, taking each day at a time.”
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.
A showcase of Britain’s best young athletes, Avon’s winning contingent did not stop at Wadey, with Bristol’s Dylan Lloyd pushing Team Wales onto an impressive gold in the 3×3 basketball.
Basketball became one of the standout attractions at the School Games National Finals, with Lloyd, 16, thriving under the pressure of increased eyes.
He said: “In the evenings when all the other athletes had finished their events, a lot of other sports came to watch us and filled out the seats. It was a nice atmosphere to play in, it was exciting and felt good to win.
“Our plan is to go into academy basketball, keep going with the Wales programme and see where it goes from there.”
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.