The countdown to the London 2012 Olympics went under the three-year mark in August – and Canterbury basketball star Harriet Yea insists her dream appearance remains firmly on track.

The 19-year-old underlined her potential by being named under-18 women’s English player of the year in 2007 and is already part of the Great Britain senior set-up.

Yea received another feather for her cap earlier this summer when she was handpicked to join the Lloyds TSB Local Heroes initiative, receiving £1,000 in the process to aid her London bid.

With the London games less than three years away, the former Kent College pupil insists she is more determined than ever to take part in the Olympics.

Yea (pictured) said: "It was a pretty decent year for me overall and things with the Great Britain team are really starting to look up.

"As a team we are quite young but we are getting better with every game so in a few years we should have a brilliant team.

"We’ve got a new coach in Tom Maher who is bringing the best out of everyone.

"I had a good season and shot well and feel like my game is improving all the time – I was second in the Eurobasket for shots which was pleasing.

"The Olympics in London are what I’m looking toward and I’ve already started thinking about it.

"To represent Great Britain in London would be the pinnacle of my career and I’m going to work as hard as I possibly can to make sure I get there."

Yea is one of 270 youngsters from all over the country to be handed the grant and with her jet-setting lifestyle – Yea spent part of 2009 playing in Spain – she says the cash is a big help.

"Getting the grant from Lloyds was brilliant and helped me out with travel expenses and being able to get new kit," said Yea.

"My little car gets around a lot so I was able to pay for petrol and things like that which otherwise would’ve been a struggle."

Lloyds TSB is providing £1,000 to over 270 emerging young sports people identified each year across Britain, in the run-up to London 2012 and beyond.

Visit Lloydstsb.com/Localheroes