A MEDAL-WINNING Winter Olympic achievement of a North Somerset snowboarder has seen an explosion in the number of people wanting to try the sport.

Jenny Jones bagged a bronze in Sochi last week, in the process securing Britain’s first ever Winter Olympic medal on snow.

And the 34-year-old’s success has resulted in a big boost for the sporting business where her career began.

Jenny first took up snowboarding at the Mendip Snowsport Centre in Churchill some 16 years ago.

And after Jenny spoke fondly of her training at the dry slope in her post-medal interviews this week, the centre has enjoyed an explosion in popularity as other would-be Olympians book up to take their first steps into the sport.

Spokesman Richard Eddins said: “The first time she strapped on a board was on our slope, and she has mentioned that in practically every interview.

“Our website usually has about 1,000 visitors in a 24-hour period – on Sunday, it had 14,000. We sold all of our capacity for beginners’ snowboarding lessons overnight. It was about a month’s worth in 12 hours.”