BOLTON'S talented young sprinter Amy Spencer is just one step away from appearing in the 2001 BBC Sports Personality of the Year on Sunday.

The Bolton School pupil is on a shortlist of 10 nominations for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.

This is a new award for 2001 for sporting achievers who are 16 years old or under. The shortlist was devised from nominations made to CBBC's Blue Peter.

Literally hundreds of nominations were whittled down to the final 10, who have now gone forward for the panel to decide who should win.

The top three will be announced in Friday's Blue Peter and they will be invited to the BBC Sports Personality of the year in London on Sunday when the final winner will be announced. All in all they are some of Britain's brightest sporting hopes for the future.

Amy, aged 16, who lives in Aspull and uses the new track at Horwich to hone her talents, is the fastest 100m and 200m British runner in her age group. She won a silver medal at the U18 World Championships, with the winner two years older. She is already an U20 international and was the youngest ever winner of the U20 indoor 200m championship.

UK Athletics rate her as their top young athlete and a natural successor to Katherine Merry.