A rower at Wisbech Grammar School has outclassed older competitors to take a national gold medal.

Camilla Plumb, 17, who is studying for her A Levels, beat rowers from universities across the country in the women’s under 23 lightweight two-kilometre event at the London 2012 velodrome.

Her winning time of seven minutes 55 seconds on the rowing machine was almost 50 seconds faster than her nearest rival.

A member of the Peterborough City Rowing Club since the age of 12, Plumb, who lives in Eye, was competing in only her second national event, having taken part in the British indoor rowing championships in Birmingham in 2010.

After completing her A Levels in biology, chemistry and geography in the summer, she plans to devote much more time to training during a gap year to build her fitness and ability with the aim of trialling for the under 23 lightweight Great Britain squad and taking part in the Tokyo Olympics and the World Rowing Cup.

She said: “It was a really good experience, especially visiting the Olympic Park where the Great Britain athletes had been in 2012 – and I was not expecting to win.”

Headmaster Chris Staley said: “We are all really very proud of Camilla and her rowing achievements.

“This is the culmination of countless hours of dedication, hard work and sacrifice, and to win the women’s under 23 lightweight two-kilometre contest is amazing.

“I hope this will be the start of us hearing about her rowing successes.”