MILVERTON powerlifter James White built on the European title he claimed earlier this summer to take gold in the junior World Championships in France.

The 22-year-old, who trains on his own in a farm garage, picked up gold for Great Britain in the dead lift at the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) showpiece at La Garde, near Toulon, Provence.

His victory came in the under-75kg class for under-23s, although he didn't feature in the squat and bench press classes.

"He was expecting a gold in the dead lift - it's his best event," said his father, Jim.

"But conditions were onerous and he had to work pretty hard.

"He weighed in at 74.5kg but for a couple of days he had to go without food and drink to get his weight down."

James has been powerlifting seriously for three years and his early promise came to fruition when he won the junior European Championships in Prague.

Powerlifting is not an Olympic sport but officials are lobbying for its inclusion, and the lack of recognition has made life difficult for James, who used to attend Queen's College and Somerset College in Taunton.

He has to train by himself in a large garage at his brother-in-law Chris Saunders' farm at Milverton, and travels to Bournemouth once a fortnight for specialist practice.

Jim said: "He's got his own weight training area but he's had to buy his own weights.

"He has had no help from anyone. All his achievements have been pretty much his own work. We're obviously very proud of him."

James is hoping to compete in the Great Britain versus Holland clash planned to take place towards the end of the year.

He graduated in sports science at Gloucester University but is hoping for a career as a commercial airline pilot. He is considering taking the Oxford air training course next year.