Athletics: Sir Chris passes on golden touch

The 17-year-old George Watson's College pupil faces a tall order to hit the qualifying standard having recorded a season's best leap of 7.05 metres – exactly 50cm short.

Hamilton must also top the podium at the English Under-20 Championships in less than two weeks to automatically qualify rather than wait on the verdict of the selectors.

The Edinburgh Athletic Club long jumper is all too aware of the mountain he has to climb in order to travel to Canada and admits it is simply a case of win or bust.

"I have got a big few weeks coming up now and it is a really important time for me. I really want to win at the English Under-20 Championships and get myself to the world juniors," said Hamilton. "It is going to be difficult because I will need to win there and get the qualifying distance to guarantee myself a trip to Canada. The qualifying distance they have set is quite high but I am quietly confident I can do it. I have got my exams out of the way now and I can just go for some really hard training and just go for it for the next few weeks."

Hamilton received a boost in his bid towards qualifying for the World Junior Championships having received tips from four-time Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy as part of Bank of Scotland National School Sport Week. Hamilton said: "I had a good chat with Sir Chris and we were just talking about my sport and what I am doing now in training and competition. He was a really nice guy and he is probably the biggest name I have met but he is really down to earth. He is a great sportsman and it was really inspiring to meet and spend the day with him."

BANK OF SCOTLAND National School Sport Week runs until tomorrow. To find out more visit: www.schoolsportweekscotland.org