A delighted Carlisle-born cyclist said it felt "really special" to win European Under-23 Track Championship gold - as she came home with a glut of medals.

Teenager Ellie Dickinson, who began her cycling career with Carlisle’s Border City Wheelers, claimed four medals from the competition.

She took silvers in the omnium, scratch race and the individual pursuit, and gold in the madison alongside Team GB team-mate Manon Lloyd.

"I'm really happy," the 19-year-old said. "It's always nice to come away from a major championship with a medal, so to take four in my first year of Under-23s I'm really happy with."

And Dickinson admitted it had been a challenge preparing for each event throughout the competition in Anadia, Portugal.

"It was definitely really hard to prepare for each event because they are all so different," she admitted.

"But I wanted the same outcome in every race I started - to win.

"So, it was more important to keep a calm head, not to get carried away or disheartened if things went wrong, stick to plans and follow instructions from my coach on the trackside."

On the gold her and Lloyd managed to secure, Dickinson told The Cumberland News : "It was really special.

"It's an amazing feeling winning at a major championship, and to win my first European title alongside a great friend who I train with every day made it feel even more special.

"It was a really tough race for the both of us to win, I'm just really happy we could pull it off."

Having also competed in the team pursuit, where GB finished fourth, Cumbrian Dickinson admits there are lessons to take forward after the championships.

"I learn something new every trip I go on, regardless of the size of the competition whether it's something personal about me as an athlete or of the bike, or learning from other riders," she said.

"This trip, I've learnt the most that it's never over until it's over, and staying focused on what you came here to do is key."

Dickinson also cycled for Penrith's Beacon Wheelers in the early stages of her journey in the sport and admits it "feels like yesterday" she first got involved.

She said: "I always find myself, when I'm heading to a major competition or when I'm heading up to the start of my race, thinking 'gosh I can't believe it's gone from that to this'."

This weekend, the Cumbrian will be cycling in Ride London before heading to the Road European Championships, in Denmark, at the start of next month.