WANTAGE teenager John Paul’s meteoric rise through the cycling ranks hits a new high when he flies the flag for Scotland in Delhi.

The 17-year-old will be one of the youngest competitors in the Commonwealth Games velodrome where the high-speed action gets under way on Tuesday.

Paul had made it one of his ambitions to represent his homeland – where he lived until six years ago – at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014.

But his progress has been such that he has received the call-up for this year’s Games.

“That was one of my big goals, so it totally came as a shock when I got selected,” said the A-level student from King Alfred’s Community & Sports College, Wantage.

“I really didn’t expect to get selected because I was right on the age limit, so it was brilliant.

“It is just amazing – it has not sunk in yet. I don’t think it will until I get out there.”

Paul’s selection comes on the back of an impressive season, which has seen him crowned the National Junior Sprint champion in Newport after finishing fourth in the team sprint at the World Junior Championships at Montichiari in Italy.

And only last week he teamed up with City of Edinburgh teammates Callum Skinner and Kevin Stewart to take silver in the team sprint at the British National Championships behind Sir Chris Hoy, Jason Kenny and Matt Campton.

It was Hoy who inspired Paul to take up the sport.

“I was watching the Olympics at Athens on TV one night when he won the ‘kilo’ for Great Britain in the velodrome,” he said. “I thought it was really cool and I wanted to try it.”

But Paul, who will find out which event he is to compete in after training in Delhi, doesn’t have any expectations of adding to his own medal collection.

“What I will get out of the Games will be invaluable experience of competing at that level and at an international level,” he said.

“I am not looking to win any medals.”