BLACKBURN ice skating sensations Zoe Jones, 19 and Alan Street, 17, were in the medals at the Skate Nescafe National Series.

Alan secured gold in the senior men's category and Zoe silver in the senior women's category in an event which saw skaters from all over Britain converge on the Crow Tree Leisure Centre, Sunderland, to compete in the UK's premier figure skating series.

A qualifying round for the British Figure Skating Championships, the event attracted a string of local competitors as well as playing host to some of Britain's finest skaters.

"It was a huge success," said the National Ice Skating Association's events co-ordinator, Nicki Curling. "This is the first year of the Skate Nescafe National Series and already we are seeing a significant improvement in standards of performance.

"If British skating is going to challenge for major international honours, our skaters need regular national level competition and Skate Nescafe is providing just that," she added.

Coached by Joy Sutcliffe, Alan and Zoe will now be settling back into training in preparation for the British Figure Skating Championships.

This year's British Championships will be held, for the first time, at the Dundonalds International Ice Bowl, Belfast, Northern Ireland from November 8-13.

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