TWO of Devon's best young fighters are on the brink of realising their Olympic dreams.

Young mum Chloe Lock, 24, from Rockbeare, and Martin Morgan, 16, from Whimple, have earned the right to take part in the next round of Olympic tae kwon do qualifiers.

The pair will be assessed by the UK Talent Team and coaches from Sport Tae Kwon Do UK this weekend to see if they have the "drive, commitment and determination to transfer their talent and capitalise on this Olympic opportunity".

Chloe said: "I'm absolutely thrilled to be through to the next phase of the Olympic qualifiers, it's a great feeling. I've represented England in the World Championships, so to go forward and represent Britain in the Olympics would be amazing.

"Martin and I are really focused on our training for the big day and will do our absolute best to get through.

"We both have to train extra hard as we have had time out of training recently. I have had time out to look after my son, who is 15 months old, and Martin has had nine months out through injury.

"I have trained alongside Martin since he started tae kwon do at the age of seven. He has been a student at my club for two years. I'm particularly proud that at just 16 he has already shown the skill and determination it takes to be an Olympic athlete."

Martin said: "To represent Britain in the Olympics would be a dream come true. Chloe has been a fantastic instructor and I'm determined to do my best in the next phase of the qualifying rounds."

The pair were chosen from more than 1,000 applicants, which included a number of world and European champions. They are now among 223 hopefuls from across Britain selected to attend the next qualifying stage

Chloe, a 3rd dan black belt and Martin, a 2nd dan black belt, are members of Broadclyst and Honiton's TAGB Star Tae Kwon Do Group.

Chloe has been running Star Tae Kwon Do at Broadclyst for nearly seven years and recently incorporated Honiton into the club.

Having started learning the sport when she was 12, Chloe's first successful competitive outing was in Wales in May 1998. She has been a regular competitor, both nationally and internationally, for 10 years. She was ranked second in the world in 2005 and achieved gold in the British Championships in 2007. She has shown she is back on form after her break, having won gold in October at the South West of England Championships.

Martin trains and assists with teaching at classes. He took gold in the British Championships in 2007, was ranked number four in the world in 2009 and claimed gold and silver medals at the British Championships 2010.

As well as coaching, Martin is also a young Olympic ambassador through which he aims to inspire, educate and encourage others to "achieve personal excellence".