A teenager has become a national pentathlon champion.

Meopham’s Talia Junaid-Evans claimed the English Schools’ Athletic Association Combined Events Championship crown in Chelmsford, Essex.

Representing Kent, she scored a personal-best of 3,265 points to come 342 points ahead of the second-placed competitor in the junior girls’ category.

The 14-year-old said: “I did really well. I got everything I was hoping for.

“I started off with the (75m) hurdles at about 9am, it was a pentathlon PB - but not a hurdles PB.

“I came third in that. After that was the shot put.

“I came second in that and, after that, was the high jump where I jumped 1.65m, which was a 1cm personal-best.

“Then, there was the long jump.

"Last was the 800m and I won it by quite a few seconds so that was good.”

Her success now means the Dartford Harriers athlete has been selected to represent England at her first international competition - a Schools International Athletics Board competition - in Glasgow.

“It will be really good, representing my country,” said Junaid-Evans, who has never previously been involved in an athletics event off English soil.

“We had a meeting where they told us when we’re flying to Glasgow for the competition on December 6 and what to expect. That will be really cool.

“It was really nice because they were very professional about it.”

Training for action across multiple formats is a big undertaking for any athlete.

But Junaid-Evans explained: “I just look to go one event at a time.

“I train five times a week, as well. For now, I’m going to keep training.

“I don’t mind that because at least I can keep improving.”

Junaid-Evans’ English Schools’ Athletic Association Combined Events Championships competition came on the same weekend in which Katarina Johnson-Thompson secured joint-bronze at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

Indeed, her own points haul places her just behind the 32-year-old Olympic silver medal heptathlete on the all-time list.

“I was watching KJT,” she revealed. “She was in the exact same position that I was in the other day.

"Hopefully, I can follow in her footsteps.”

Junaid-Evans might consider putting all her attention into a single discipline but is happy to continue performing across multiple formats for now.

“If I get really good at one event, maybe I will just focus on that,” she said.

“But if not, I think I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing.”