VERWOOD skier Niamh Thompson is a European champion at the tender age of nine.

The Dumpton School pupil saw off all-comers in the under-10 category at the European Dry Slope Slalom Championships held in Kilternan near Dublin recently.

Incredibly, it was Thompson’s first competition win and her time of 20.29 seconds was also faster than any skier in the under-12 category.

The youngster trains at Snowtrax in Hurn and is the youngest member of the Ski X Performance Centre squad run by Olympian Ed Drake at the Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead.

She learned to ski in France at the age of four and has trained at Snowtrax for the last two years.

Thompson entered a few events in 2013 but this year has been her first full season of racing.

In 2014, she has competed in a number of regional level competitions, picking up three silver and three bronze medals in 11 events.

Her consistent form throughout the season earned her two podium places – third in the Southern Region Ski Association Summer Series and more recently third in the London South East Region Ski Association Summer Series (LSERSA).

The LSERSA result was particularly impressive as Thompson was skiing a year young and was the highest-placed finisher in her year of birth.

She entered her first national club race at Southampton Alpine Centre in July and ended up third.

Thompson later entered her second national event, the Irish Open, and her first ever European championships.

In the Ski Club of Ireland Irish Open Dry Slope Slalom, she finished second in the under-10 girls category in a time of 20.55 seconds.