BOURNEMOUTH Collegiate School pupil Alice Tai will be making a splash this summer when she competes for Gold in the Rio Paralympics.

Alice, 17, was born with bilateral talipes - club foot - and after 14 operations to help her walk her ankles are now fused at a 90 degree angle.

She has no movement in her ankles at all, something which according to Alice makes it very difficult to kick in the water.

But despite this obvious disadvantage the teenager has made a name for herself in paralympic swimming and on Monday was named as one of 31 swimmers who will be competing for team GB at the games in Rio this September.

"I am really, really thrilled to have made it onto the team," said Alice, who has recently moved to Manchester for training ahead of the games.

"We are a young team which is really nice because we are all kind of going through the same things together.

"I've put school on hold for a bit to focus on training so that I have the best shot at making the podium.

"Rio is going to be the fastest paralympics ever but I am feeling fairly confident about my own performance."

Alice competes in the SB9 and S10 classifications for swimmers with impaired muscle power and will be trying for gold in the backstroke and butterfly and is up for selection for two freestyle relays.

Despite not being able to walk without the aid of crutches Alice has always felt confident in the water.

"My parents wanted to make sure I was safe in water as we lived right by the sea," said Alice, who was born in Poole.

"So from the age of six they took me for swimming lessons at Seagulls Swimming Club in New Milton and it was here where I realised just how much I loved the water.

"I didn't realise I was at a disadvantage.

"Then when I was a bit older they realised I could be classified as a disability swimmer and so I started training and competing."

For Alice, who studies psychology, English literature and art at Bournemouth Collegiate School, the dream is to have a career in swimming.

"Paralympic swimmers can actually have longer careers than the able-bodied athletes so I'm hoping I can compete in a few more paralympic games in the future.

"And with the growing interest in paralympic sports I really hope to do well and make my family and country proud."

The Paralympic Games start in Rio on Wednesday, September 7.

Alice will be taking to the water on the second day for the 50m freestyle event ahead of her 100m backstroke the following day.