Somerset students have been running in the footsteps of Olympians thanks to the arrival of £60,000 worth of sports equipment.

Weston College’s fitness suite has been kitted out with the same hi-tech machines used at London’s Olympic village.

Student Jamie Dulleham, 18, who studied a diploma in sport at the college and is now an apprentice with Allied Homes, helped staff source the TechnoGym equipment, which includes running and upper-body machines, cross trainers and a dual adjustable pulley.

Darran George, head of the service sectors faculty, said: “The machines are right up to the minute in terms of their spec. They do all the usual things like monitoring heart rate and calories burned, but they are also linked to the internet, and can even be used to help with literacy and numeracy.”