Teenager Eire Rowland-Evans says she finds it “quite hard” to juggle all her activities.

That’s hardly surprising because she’s a very good swimmer, a very good pole vaulter and very good at tug of war.

She’s good at other sports too but ask her to say which she’s best at it she’ll say, after some hesitation, “tug of war”.

It’s not what many would consider a mainstream sport but it’s one the 16-year-old former Ribston Hall High School pupil in Gloucester has been involved in for the best part of four years now.

And very good at it she is too because she has represented England Under-18s and despite only just having turned 16 she is set to captain the team in the world championships in South Africa in September.

“I started when I was 12 when I joined the Army cadets,” said Eire, who is a member of Eastern Avenue Platoon.

“I joined the cadets because I thought it was really exciting and would give me lots of opportunities to do sport.”

She wasn’t wrong either and as well as athletics, swimming and tug of war, it has given her the opportunity to play hockey, football, do cross country and much more.

And just in case you think Eire is a sports fanatic who thinks about nothing else you’d be very wrong.

“The cadets have given me a good chance to learn new skills and gain new qualifications,” she said. Those include first aid, working with radios, teaching and learning about weapons.

But it is the tug of war that has the biggest pull on young Eire, who lives in Elmbridge with her family.

It’s a sport that has enabled her to travel all over the country and further afield – she competed in Belgium with the Army cadets last year – and she is of course looking forward to going to Cape Town in a couple of months’ time.

Eight pullers make up a tug of war team, so what makes a good puller?

“You need really strong legs,” she said. “A lot of people think you need powerful arms but you need a really strong core because you need to get your core really close to the ground. You also need lots of stamina.”

Tug of war is not a current Olympic sport but Eire is hoping that will change.

“It used to be an Olympic sport,” she said. “The Olympics are a lot more open to new sports – cheerleading and beach volleyball are both Olympic sports – so I’m hopeful.

“In countries such as China, Sweden and South Africa it’s part of the national curriculum and children start as young as five.”

It’s not as big a sport in this country of course – Eire trains once a week at Upton St Leonards Cricket Club – but at least she has other sports she can pursue.

She swims for Brockworth Swimming Club and is hoping to compete at the regionals and nationals and she pole vaults for Cheltenham Harriers and was the fifth best in age group in the South West last year.

When she spoke to The Local Answer, Eire was coming towards the end of her GCSEs. She clearly enjoys a busy life and it’s going to remain busy because she has been awarded a sports scholarship to attend Cheltenham Ladies’ College.

She’s looking forward to that, of course, but she insists has no plans to give up tug of war, or her swimming or pole vaulting.

“I’m going to keep doing all three,” she said.

To make a donation to help Eire and the team compete in South Africa, visit the Just Giving page https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/england-tug-of-war-u18