Alan (61), who works for the Youth Sport Trust, is the official start co-ordinator for the athletics at the Olympics and Paralympics this summer. He shared his tips and techniques about what it takes to be a chief starter at major sporting events with a group of young people from Bishop Challoner Sports College at the Lee Valley Leisure Complex. He was joined by Olympic gold medallist Jason Gardener who, in his role as a Youth Sport Trust Ambassador, explained to the young people the key to mastering the perfect sprint.

In his career as an athletics official, which began in 1976, Alan has started more than 25,000 races - everything from local school competitions through to the World Athletics Championships in Daegu last year. In May this year he has the honour of being the chief starter at the Sainsbury's 2012 School Games, before going on to officiate at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Alan has worked for the Youth Sport Trust for more than a decade across a range of projects including those to drive up the number of young officials in sport and is looking forward to the year ahead and the role that officials will be playing: "Every great sportsperson relies heavily on an army of officials and volunteers to make sporting events happen - which is why it is important that we raise their profile and encourage more young people to get involved. It is fantastic to be able to pass on some of my experiences of being an athletics official to these young people who may go on to play key roles as sports officials in the future. It is an extremely exciting year ahead for me and I am proud to be playing such a pivotal role in some of the greatest sporting events in this country."

Jason Gardener, who won gold in the 4x100 metre relay at the Athens Olympics, said: "My sprinting career was built on being extremely fast out of the blocks and I am delighted to share my experiences today. To learn all about what the chief starter of a race actually does will give these young people a real insight that will help them become better athletes in the future."