A schoolboy from Bury St Edmunds has become the second fastest rower for his age in Britain thanks to his performance at a national final.

Nick Scott, a pupil at County Upper School in the town, finished the 1,500m course at Nottingham in six minutes and 23 seconds.

The Junior Inter-Regional Rowing Competition (JIRR) is held annually at the Holme Pierrepoint National Watersports centre - one of the sites of the 2012 Olympic Games.

At the competition last month racers had to battle through heats in the morning, when Nick came third overall. But in the afternoon’s final he managed to improve his time by 21 seconds to take second place in the J14 single sculls category.

Nick, who only began rowing 18 months ago, said: “The other competitors were really good and I was extremely nervous before the final, but once the race got under way I had a surge of adrenaline. The whole day was awesome. Rowing is the best sport in the world.”

Nick’s coach at Sudbury Rowing Club is Tim Baldwin, who said: “He’s worked incredibly hard and this is a tremendous achievement.”

Nick added: “I couldn’t have done it without the work that my coach, Tim, and the club put in - and my school has been hugely supportive.”

Vicky Neale, headteacher of County Upper School, said: “Our whole school community is very proud of his well-deserved rowing success and the modest way he approaches his achievements.

“Nick is an excellent student and a fine young man who is a real asset in and out of the classroom.”

Nick has been chosen to represent the East of England after a series of qualifiers throughout spring.

The JIRR is organised by British Rowing, which is responsible for the training and selection of individual rowers and crews to represent Great Britain.

Overall, the team for the Eastern Region came second out of all 12 rowing regions.

Eastern region team manager Chris Callow said: “The Eastern Region fielded a strong team, represented by 13 different clubs/schools. Congratulations to all the members, especially Nick Scott of Sudbury Rowing Club.

“The performance of the team saw them come in second overall behind Thames Lower - the highest position the region has attained in its history.”

Anyone who is interested in rowing can visit sudburyrowingclub.org.uk