A 12-year-old has battled the heat and humidity of the Arabian peninsula to finish 14th in the world biathlete championships.

Elliot Laville, a final year student at Shrewsbury House School, Surbiton, represented Britain at the event in Dubai on Saturday, October 30.

Competing in the U12 category, he first ran 500m, then swam 50m in the open water and finished with another 500m run.

Elliot finished in five minutes 34 seconds, 56 seconds behind the victorious Egyptian champion Ahmed Shahin. The result raised him to fourth in the UK’s rankings.

Elliot is a member of the Hercules Wimbledon running club and Wimbledon Dolphins swimming club, and frequently competes in the Wimbledon Common Park 5km run.

Shrewsbury headteacher Kevin Doble said: “We are very proud of Elliot’s remarkable achievement.

“He is a very determined young man and we wish him every success with his future biathlon career.

“I have no doubt the Dubai world championship will, in due course, become but one of his many successes.”