Double Olympic rowing gold medallist and four-time world champion Steve Williams thrilled the sporting stars of Bushey's Immanuel College by presenting their awards for performance in internal events, local leagues and Maccabi tournaments.

He also had words of encouragement for late sporting developers, confiding: "I was the least obvious person in my school to become a professional athlete - I always came last in every race. It wasn't until I was 13 and took up rowing that I discovered I was good at a sport."

In a subsequent question-and-answer session, Williams said: "Winning a gold medal at the Olympics is a sacred and primeval experience. You don't know beforehand how deep you have to dig inside you to get the result."