A TEENAGER has set his heart on being the best thing on one wheel in the world.

Will Stevens of Stourport is already one of the top unicyclists in the country and next year will take his dreams of global domination to the world championships in Japan to try and improve on the sixth place he earned in the 2002 US event.

The 18-year-old former Stourport High School pupil - who has learnt unicycling and a range of other circus tricks in just three years - spoke following a successful British Unicycle Convention at Wolverley at the weekend.

Some 270 unicyclists from across the country turned up for a mixture of fun, trick swapping and competition. unicyclist Will Stevens is pictured in his Stourport garden.

"It was the biggest convention we've ever had - record-breaking," said Will, of Park Crescent.

"I came second in the Open X. Fifty per cent of the marks are for costume and music and the other side is the technical difficulty of the tricks."

Stunts include walking on the unicycle wheel, jumping off the machine and spinning it through 360 degrees before landing, backwards riding and one-footed riding.

But Will's real forte is Trail - an assault course of steps, ramps, rails and beams which competitors have 20 minutes to negotiate.

He hopes to beat off up to 1,000 competitors at next year's championship to be crowned king of the event.

Will turned professional this year and now makes a living from teaching and demonstrating unicycling as well as other circus tricks like juggling - with up to five balls or flaming torches - at schools and other venues across the country.

"When I started circus tricks I took to unicycling straight away and I thought I wouldn't mind doing this for a job - but I never thought I'd make it."

He learnt his trade at circus skills classes at Stourport High School which he still attends, despite now far outstripping his teacher Steve Grainger.

"I look at tricks from videos - even though my teacher can't do it himself he knows how to teach."

And the future could see more world-beating unicyclers from Wyre Forest.

"I think in a few years it could be as common as skateboarding - it's growing all the time," said Will.