EIGHT aspiring reporters have pulled off a scoop - an interview with British long jump record holder Chris Tomlinson.

Pupils from Middlesbrough's Kings Manor and Hall Garth schools met the 22-year-old athlete at the town's Clairville sports stadium, on Tuesday as part of a project aimed at encouraging children to continue learning and working creatively.

The Middlesbrough-based long jumper has secured a place in the Great Britain team for the Olympics, despite not achieving the Olympic 'A' qualifying standard of 8.19m.

The youngsters are attending a week-long summer school, to learn about the media and sports reporting, before they fly off to Greece in August to report on the Olympics in Athens, a trip organised by Creative Partnerships Tees Valley in partnership with Middlesbrough Football Club's Playing for Success study centre.

During the school, at the Riverside stadium, Ashley Turner, Scott Gell, Sophie Rowney, Selina Rashad, Magadass Ahmed, Helen Appleby, James Ooi and Grant Quick, are learning about sports reporting from journalists and filmmakers.

Martin Hedgley, manager of the Playing for Success centre, said: "Although this is an exciting opportunity for the children it is very much a working trip."

Carol Alevroyianni, creative director of Creative Partnerships Tees Valley, said: "This project is all about teaching the young children valuable skills such as how to communicate and how to research and write something, and it is at the very heart of what we are trying to achieve with the Creative Partnerships programme."