MATTHEW Mallinson is a golden child after being crowned the 2015 British Ju-Jitsu champion.

The Blessed Trinity student, 14, won his gold medal at the British Ju-Jitsu National Championships in Walsall recently after coming through three tough bouts.

Matthew has been involved with ju-jitsu since he was five years old and trains at St Peter’s Centre and also attends advance master class training at the Masters of Martial Arts Academy in Accrington.

He has a junior black belt and admitted he couldn’t believe he was British champion in his age and weight category.

“It began as a hobby but now I have got more serious and it is fantastic to be British champion,” said Matthew. “I got silver last year so I upped my training to four days a week, putting in extra hours preparing for the competition and I was so happy when the hard work paid off.

“I just feel really proud to be British champ and now I want to win more gold medals and get my senior Black Belt when I am 16.”