A WORCESTERSHIRE martial artist won silver for England at the WKU (World Karate Union) European Championships.

Sam Thomas, 21, won a trophy in her first international tournament after taking up the sport at the age of four.

The University of Worcester student from Kidderminster competed in the advanced women’s kata in Frankfurt, Germany.

“It was nerve-wracking to start with and the waiting is often worse,” Thomas said.

“As soon as you start and the adrenaline kicks in, it’s fine and then you get off and it’s a blur.

“My coach was putting his thumbs up saying I’d got a good score. I thought I’d done OK but I didn’t expect to get silver. It was an amazing feeling.”

The second dan black belt qualifies for the world championships in Orlando, USA, in September but, due to costs, her focus is instead on the Premier International Open in Spain in October.

The member of Kidderminster’s Young Gloves Karate Club trains six days a week and has just completed her degree in physical education and English.

A £300 scholarship from the university enabled Thomas, who also teaches the martial art, to go to Frankfurt.

She will continue at Worcester and train to be a primary school teacher.