TO be the best you have to learn from the best, and gymnast Jack Chamberlain has been inspired by a masterclass from a double gold medallist.

Ahead of the 2016 School Games multi-sport international event the recently-crowned Olympic champion Max Whitlock was passing on advice to a group of the best young athletes in the country, representing England at the Loughborough University tournament.

Elton High School pupil Chamberlain had great encouragement from Whitlock, who struck gold in the pommel horse and floor exercise in Rio this summer. And he and his England team mates must have heeded his words of wisdom as they won the team gold.

Individually Chamberlain, aged 15, came first in the high bar and second in the vault and parallel bars on day one. Backed up by fourth place on the rings and sixth on the floor, he was leading the rankings going into the final day.

Unfortunately a slip on the pommel horse on day two dented his bid for the individual apparatus top spot but with second spot in the high bar he still ended the competition for elite young athletes in a hugely impressive fifth place.

But he will surely remember the School Games for more than just the competition, as he was thrust into the spotlight as he took part in interviews screened by Sky and BBC Television.

“It was fantastic to meet Max and hear what it was like to compete at the Rio Olympic Games," he said. "I have ambitions to compete for Great Britain in the future and the School Games is a vital step for me towards that.

“Taking part in the School Games has been an amazing experience for me," he said. "Being part of the gold-medal winning England gymnastics team was a really great, but having the chance to take part in a major multi-sports event of this size has been amazing.

"On top of this I got to train with Max Whitlock only a few days after he returned from the Rio Olympics with two golds and a bronze medal.

"It was fantastic to meet him and hear what it was like to compete at the Rio Olympic Games.

"It has been a truly inspiring few days.”

Whitlock, who became Britain’s first gymnastics gold medallist at Rio, showed Jack the floor and vault techniques that have helped him to become one of the best gymnasts in the world.

He said: “Meeting some of the gymnasts reminds me of when I was setting out in my career and had ambitions to compete for Great Britain at a senior level. Rio was an incredible experience and to share some of that with the guys is such a privilege.

“Going to an Olympic, Paralympic or Commonwealth Games is an incredible experience but it can also be a daunting one. The 2016 School Games provides young athletes with a taste of what a major multi-sport event experience is like and that can only help them in their future sporting careers.”

The School Games have provided a springboard for many of today’s biggest names in sport. Previous competitors include Paralympic gold medallists Ellie Simmonds, Hannah Cockroft and Jonnie Peacock along with GB sprinter Adam Gemili and heptathlete Katrina Johnson-Thompson.

More than 1,600 athletes from across the UK compete in 12 sports, seven of which include disability disciplines, at the four-day spectacular, supported by National Lottery funding from Sport England and delivered by the Youth Sport Trust