Lizzy Yarnold speaks of humble beginnings

Lizzy Yarnold has spoken of her humble beginnings at the start of her road to the Sochi Olympics skeleton gold medal.

The 25-year-old claimed that it took her "a few years" to get over her fear of the high-paced sport and that she initially struggled to raise money for a sledge bag.

Yarnold told the BBC: "I was inspired by Denise Lewis to do the heptathlon and I wanted to emulate her. It was a shock to be told I was selected for skeleton bobsleigh on the Going4Gold programme. It took me a few years to stop becoming scared as every track is different.

"When I first got involved in skeleton, I was working full-time, working in the city and training in the gyms. I needed to buy a sledge bag and I remember it was for £174.

"I just couldn't afford it, so I put a jam jar on my desk saying I was raising money for it. A gentleman in the office then came over to me, took an envelope out of his pocket and said, "I hope this is enough?". He was called Mervyn so I named my sledge after him. We've been friends ever since."

The 25-year-old's gold medal is the tenth won by Great Britain in Winter Olympics history.