Swimmer Jacob Peters, 20, from Poole, has been selected as one of a 28-strong Team GB swimming squad for the delayed Tokyo games, beginning on 23 July.

He has been helped on his way since 2017 by three grants totalling almost £1,500 from the Young and Talented Fund set up with Dorset Community Foundation by Dorset Lord Lieutenant Angus Campbell.

Jacob’s mum Rachael said: “The grants were a huge help to us because it is so expensive when you have to drive to important meetings in Plymouth, Sheffield, Glasgow and Edinburgh. It is not just expensive for the swimmer but also for the family because when they are under 18 they have to have an adult with them and the coaches want them there a day before the meeting.

“Then there is the equipment to buy; it all mounts up.”

Jacobs finished second at British Swimming’s selection meeting at the National Aquatic Centre last week.

Although he clocked up 51.65 seconds in the 100m butterfly, the 11th fastest time in the world this year, he still had an anxious wait for British Swimming to release its squad once it had been ratified by the British Olympic Association.

Jacob was home on a week off from training in Bath when he heard the news, but his parents were out. “We had gone to look at a car,” said Mrs Peters. “We expected to hear later so we were caught on the hop really.”

The family has celebrated the call-up but Jacob has kept his feet on the ground. “Obviously he is absolutely chuffed but he knows there is a lot of work to do. He wants to come away from the Games having made an impact, he doesn’t just want to go there to make up the numbers,” said Mrs Peters.

GB coaches won’t allocate swimming berths until closer to the events in Tokyo but Mrs Peters said her son hopes to be selected in the 100m butterfly and be somewhere in the 4x100m medley relay team.