THE heroic performance of Danny Talbot in helping Great Britain win gold in the men’s 4x100m relay at the World Athletics Championships could ‘inspire a generation’ of talented youngsters, according to people in Trowbridge.

The former St Augustine’s pupil has been the talk of the town since he and his teammates won gold on Saturday.

Headteacher Joe Alsop, who was in that role when Danny was at the school, said what the 26-year-old had accomplished was an achievement to make the whole town proud.

“What Danny has achieved is remarkable. Hopefully he will inspire a generation of talented youngsters in the town,” he said.

“As a pupil, he was so dedicated and he has carried that through into his athletics career. He is the best role model you could hope for.”

Mr Talbot’s head of year and one of his PE teachers, Roger Gordon, said: “In the Leaver’s Book he wrote ‘One day I hope to run for GB’. I don’t think he ever imagined then that it would involve becoming an Olympian, having the opportunity to compete against one of the world’s greatest all-time sprinters and then, at the age 26, becoming a world champion.

“He always has time to talk when we meet, though, and I’m hoping he will drop by school sometime soon with his medal to inspire our current crop of aspiring young athletes.”

Leisure services supervisor at Active Trowbridge, Adam Casserly, said: “Hopefully local children can one day follow in his footsteps. To win gold is a fantastic achievement.

“Every day I see young talent at schools and at our fun days. This shows that if you work hard, you can really achieve anything you want in life.”