A Porsche parked outside an inner-city gym provided a fast solution for British weightlifter Sonny Webster’s Olympic funding problems.

The sports car stood out in the gritty St Paul’s neighbourhood of Bristol that day in 2011 and Webster, now preparing for his first Olympic Games, recalled how he enquired at the door about the owner.

“I asked the guy on the door who the car belonged to and was told, ‘That’s Jeff’s’. So I walked into the gym and shouted out, ‘Who’s Jeff?’,” said the 22-year-old.

“This guy stuck his hand up and said, ‘Me’. I just shouted back if he fancied sponsoring me for £500. I only meant it as a one off-payment but he shouted back, ‘£500 a month? Okay... sure’.”

Webster said the money from businessman Jeff Dovey allowed him to train full-time and realise his dream of qualifying for the Olympics. He will compete in the 94kg division in Rio.

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