FORMER Olympian Roger Black was the chief speaker at the second Solent SportAid lunch at The Rose Bowl to raise funds for up-and-coming youngsters.

The 400m silver medallist at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 was on hand to present teenage basketball hopeful Charlotte Heron with a cheque for £250 towards funding her career.

Black, from Gosport, gave a talk about his career in front of over 100 business people from Solent SportAid partners Bond Pearce, KPMG, Marsh and Meachers Group.

Black studied medicine at Southampton University, represented Great Britain in athletics for 14 years, both as an individual 400m runner and as a member of the 4 x 400m relay team.

He won fifteen major Championship medals including European, Commonwealth and World Championship gold, as well as the Olympic silver. He is now a presenter for BBC television sport and a motivational speaker.

Ex-Saints boss Lawrie McMenemy, a patron of SportAid, was also present and quipped he could have run as fast as Black "if I'd have Kriss Akabussi' behind me all the time!"