Coni is chasing her Olympic dream

The young star, who trains with the Ryu Shotokan club at Nuffield Health Gym in Hednesford, recently won the British Four Nations championship for the second year running.

Coni is now due to represent England in an international tournament in Helsinki, but after 40 medals in three-and-a-half years, she is already establishing herself as the golden girl of British karate.

“The long-term aim is to work towards international events and hopefully become an Olympian,” explained her coach Mike Carr, 30.

“That is the aim for Coni. Karate has just been introduced into the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

“The head England coach, Jon Mottram, has had his eye on Coni for quite a while.

“A lot of people think she could make a difference when she’s older and really go for the top accolades of world and European champion and hopefully become an Olympian.

“The short-term aim is to now working toward Helsinki. She’s already won an international open before.

“The aim is to go out there and win it – even though it’s her first championship with the England squad.

“She can perform when she’s on her game. There’s an expectation of her now, she’s amassed around 40 medals in three-and-a-half years, she’s looking at 10 medals a year since she started.

“She’s now competing in older age groups and beating girls who are 14 and 15. We’re looking to push her for the future. We want her to challenge any girl under 16 before she’s 12.”

The St Mary’s Catholic Primary School student proved she was capable of handling the pressure at the recent British Four Nations at the Leicester Arena.

“She was apprehensive but quite focused,” said Carr. “She knew who she was going up against, she the calibre of the girls, she knew straight from the off she was going up against three of her England team-mates. We knew we had to be focused she had to beat the best.”

Tokyo will come too soon for Coni, but if the Cannock Karate champion continues on her current trajectory, she could be lighting up future Games to come.