Queen hosts Palace event to celebrate Olympics summer

Star sportsmen and women who won gold for the nation during the summer’s extravaganza of sport were invited to the palace to mark their achievements.

Wheelchair racer Hannah Cockroft, from Halifax, admitted that she was “so scared” as she waited to speak to the Queen.

Wearing her two sprint gold medals from London 2012, Cockroft said: “It is amazing to be here because there are so many people who are dying to meet her.

“I was told not to talk first so I just sat there smiling at her. I probably looked a bit of a numpty but that was alright because she is a nice lady – can you say that about the Queen?

“It does just finish the Games off nicely. If you know that the top lady in Britain is proud of you, then you must have done pretty good.”

Nicola Adams, from Leeds, who made sporting history as the first woman to win an Olympic boxing gold medal, said she was “really nervous, but excited” at meeting the Queen.

She said: “I think I was more excited than I was for my competition. She (the Queen) was saying how well we all did and that she is really proud of all the athletes.”