TWO Colchester athletes have been selected to compete at this summer's School Games.

Joy Ogunleye and Finn O’Reilly, both 15, will race in the national multi-sport event, which is taking place at Loughborough University from August 31 to September 3.

Colchester and Tendring Athletics Club's Ogunleye, who goes to St Benedict’s Catholic College, will represent the South squad in the 100 metres and the 4x1 relay.

Ipswich School student O’Reilly, meanwhile, will represent the Midlands squad.

Around 1,600 athletes will compete across 12 sports at the School Games, seven of which include disability disciplines.

The four-day event is supported by National Lottery funding from Sport England and delivered by the Youth Sport Trust.

The athletes will be following in the footsteps of some of Britain’s biggest sporting stars and previous competitors include Paralympic champions Hannah Cockroft, Ellie Simmonds and Jonnie Peacock, Olympic champion Adam Peaty, heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson and GB sprinter Adam Gemili.

The event is a springboard for future athletes - 56 of the 382 athletes representing Team GB at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio competed at the School Games.

The athletes will live in a dedicated athletes’ village on the Loughborough University campus, take part in an opening ceremony and perform in front of huge crowds of spectators.