Shropshire archery star Alison Williamson picked for Olympics

Shropshire archer Alison Williamson has spoken of her pride after securing a place at her sixth Olympic Games.

Yesterday's announcement by Archery GB confirming her selection in the squad for London means Williamson will shoot it out against the world's best for the sixth time on the Olympic stage.

Williamson, who is a member of the Long Mynd Archers in Church Stretton, said she was delighted.

"The Olympic selection process was a tight and tense three weeks, and the competition was fierce, as you'd expect, and I was so relieved to secure one of the three places," she said.

"I am confident Amy (Oliver), Naomi (Folkard) and I will be competitive in both the individual tournament, and also in the team event.

"I'm so thrilled and proud to have made it to my sixth Olympics. It just doesn't get any better."

Williamson, 40, won bronze at Athens in 2004 and believes she and the team can once again hit the target when lining up at Lord's cricket ground in July. "The three of us won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in 2010, and there's no reason why we can't be in the mix for a medal at Lords," she added.

"There is no greater feeling in sport than standing on the podium at the Olympic Games receiving your medal, whether it's gold, silver or bronze.

"This is a fantastic opportunity to showcase archery. I'm biased, but it's a wonderful sport, and I love it just as much now as I did when I first started shooting as a young girl."