They met Dame Kelly Holmes – double Olympic medal winner and Hannah England, silver medallist in the 1,500m in the World Championships this year at Daegu.

The conference is attended by elite sportswomen in Years 10-13 at GSA schools who represent their county or country in their chosen sport, as well those studying GCSE, AS and A2 PE.

Earlier this year, a GSA survey found that almost a third of independent UK girls’ schools have pupils who are hoping to compete in the 2012 Olympics while over 68 per cent have pupils who routinely represent their country at international level. Almost 88 per cent of Girls’ Schools Association schools educate girls who compete at national level in their chosen sport and many of these have their sights on the 2016 Olympics.