Epsom’s Simon Sykes has admitted the taste of the high life with the British Paragliding squad has left him thirsty for more after playing a part in the team’s fourth-placed finish at the recent World Championships.

The 19-year-old form Glyn Technology School student was a first reserve for the trip to Croatia last month having failed to earn enough qualification points to make the starting line-up since joining the squad in February.

Sykes will start a zoology degree at Bangor University in October to take advantage of some of the UK’s highest peaks as he bids to land a spot in the squad for the European Championships next year.

And he admits the experience this time around has left him keen to make the next step into international competition.

“I’m definitely going to get there next time. I was only aware of the qualification process at the start of February and by then I didn’t have enough time to get the qualification points I needed,” he said.

“There are only five in the squad and I’m ranked sixth best in the UK, so even in such a short space of time it was a close run thing.

“It was a great experience. I didn’t get to fly competitively but was able to provide useful assistance to the team, which will probably only benefit me.

“Getting to the world championships again and actually competing is the main aim now.”

Sykes started parascending as a three-year-old and made the step into paragliding as a 14-year-old with the Woldingham-based Green Dragons Club, having grown-up around the sport with his parents.

Competitors jump from mountain peaks and cliff-tops attempting to land in a pre-marked zone, scoring penalty points the further away they finish from the target.

Those with the lowest scores win, but it isn’t just the competition that attracted Sykes into the sport - it is the sense of freedom that has him taking to the skies time after time.

“You are almost flying like a bird. It is so still and quiet when you are 4,000 or 8,000 feet up, you feel like you can go anywhere,” he added.

“It is very relaxing and brings you as close to the natural environment as you can get. There is nothing like it.”

Paragliding - Sykes’ two top tips

1. Don’t try this at home - I would recommend finding your local club - there are a few round here - and booking yourself lessons first. You need to reach a certain level to get the insurance cover.

2. It is not as expensive as it seems - once you have done your training (£800 approx) and bought your kit (around £1,000 second-hand) the only thing you have to pay for after that is a your £65 annual insurance premium.