Antrim's Katelynn McCracken wins bronze medal at Manchester Karate Open

County Antrim teenager Katelynn McCracken maintained her winning streak by clinching a medal at the Manchester Karate Open.

Since competitive karate returned at the start of the year, Katelynn - a pupil at St Benedict's in Randalstown - has had a place on the medal rostrum at every competition she has entered.

She recently followed up a gold and silver at the North/South open with a bronze medal at the British Federation Championship in Leicester April.

And while she narrowly missed out on a place in the finals when they best young British karate athletes gathered in Manchester last weekend, Katelynn returned home with a bronze medal.

The teenager's certainly consistency bodes well ahead of next month's European Karate Federation championships in the Czech capital of Prague.

Katelynn will be up against athletes from across Europe who are ranked number one in their respective countries in the age and weight category in which she is competing.

But Northern Ireland coach James Brunton, a former top international competitor himself, is confident Katelynn has adequately prepared for this high level competition.

He said: "Katelynn has been training six or seven times a week and has approached competitive karate with gusto.

"She has an armoury of winning techniques at her disposal which combined with her fighting spirit makes her a formidable opponent in the competition arena."