A SILVER medallist paralympian archer has visited a Droitwich school to mentor girls in sport.

London 2012 medallist Mel Clark was at Droitwich Spa High School to work with the ‘girls active’ club, a group that aims to boost participation levels, confidence and self-esteem among girls who are sometimes less engaged by formal PE lessons.

The group encourages girls to be active through jogging, playing dodgeball, using exercise bikes, playing indoor curling and even listening to loud music at the same time.

The students spent the morning with the paralympian, who lives in Worcester, and heard about her determination to succeed.

In 2003, she was the first disabled archer in Europe to represent her country on the able–bodied team, but was struck down with Lyme disease and subsequently suffered from paraplegia and loss of sight in one eye.

Two years later she won the Para World Championships.

PE teacher, John Boaler said: ‘Mel’s visit was a great opportunity for the students. Her story is so inspiring and really helps our girls to understand that determination is a major part of success.

“We are very grateful to her for giving up her time.”