A taekwondo champion has been chosen to represent Great Britain at a tournament in Italy – at the age of just 13.

Nicholas Henryanto’s Korean kicks have been impressing martial arts experts since he started training at eight-years-old.

The teenager’s talent was recognised at his Manor Park club and he was selected to represent the country at the Open World Championships in Rimini in June.

Nicholas, who is in year eight at St Bonaventure’s school, was described as a “quiet young man” by headteacher Paul Halliwell.

True to form, Nicholas preferred not to speak with the Recorder, but his headteacher was full of praise.

“He’s incredibly talented but he never boasts about his exploits,” continued Mr Halliwell.

“He’s obviously very excited but he’s well aware that he needs to work for it. I’m very proud of him but as his training increases he’ll have to work hard to balance his school work too.”

Nicholas will be one of the youngest fighters in his 13 to 17-year-old category, meaning he could end up competing against somebody up to four years older than him.

But he’s not the first student from St Bonaventure’s to represent the country in taekwondo.

Two-years-ago, after completing his GCSEs at the school, martial arts champion Christian McNeish started training for Team GB.

“Chrisian did incredibly well,” Paul said. “Now Nicholas will receive training from the best athletes and compete all over the world.”