EATING well and enjoying exercise hasn't just given Susan Hakin a trim new figure, it has earned her a place in an international sporting competition.

The 35-year-old, from Crook, burned off a staggering 33,426 calories in just eight weeks to win a council competition encouraging people to lose weight by sensible dieting and an active lifestyle.

Now Susan, who has learning disabilities, has been chosen for County Durham Care's team going to a Special Olympics World Games being held in Dublin next June.

She will play in a five-a-side football team and will be among 7,000 athletes from 162 countries taking part.

Susan and her mother Margaret both took part in Wear Valley District Council's Wear Walking for Health Christmas Pudding Challenge. They were both champions, Margaret burning 18,574 calories to win the over-60s contest. One pound of fat equates to 3,500 calories.

Susan has shed more than four stones over the past year by cutting out fattening food and working out at the Visions gym at Glenholme Leisure Complex.

She also attends squad training sessions with the rest of the Great Britain team for the games, which includes David Bewick, from Stanley, Paul Kerwin, from Spennymoor, Billy Amos, of Bishop Auckland, and Helen Smith, from Newton Aycliffe.

She said: "I enjoy going to the gym and I feel really good. It is very exciting to be going to the Games."

Margaret said: "She has done wonderfully well. My husband David and I are really proud of her.

"She has gained a lot of confidence and proved that people with learning difficulties can do just as well as anybody else."