Exeter School alumna Sara Orchard reports on Olympics

For those of you enjoying watching the Olympics you may have seen Exeter School alumna Sara Orchard commentating. The school looks forward to welcoming Sara back to school for Speech Day in September.

Sara joined the Sixth Form in 1998 where she studied Economics, English and Theatre Studies before leaving in 2000 to read Sports Science at Sheffield Hallam University. At school she helped form the girls' rugby team and developed this interest further at university and is a qualified rugby referee and coach.

After graduating, Sara worked in local radio in Devon and then moved to London becoming established as one of the youngest women sports reporters with the BBC. She has worked for BBC Sport, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC London TV News on BBC One, BBC News Channel and BBC London 94.9FM and was commentator for the Rugby World Cup and Six Nations and commentator and presenter for the Women's Six Nations and World Cup commentator and presenter on TV and radio.

She has also covered Wimbledon and US Open tennis and the Commonwealth Games and European Championship hockey for radio and was a member of the commentary team for the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Sara has also been sports reporter for the Olympic News Channel from August 2010 to February covering the Winter Olympics in Sochi 2014, the Youth Olympic Games Singapore 2010 and Youth Winter Olympic Games Innsbruck 2012, plus creating and scripting sport packages from the Olympic Games. These packages were broadcast on the Olympic News Channel for TV rights holders across the world.

Away from the BBC, Sara has been an officer on the Rugby Union Writers' Club Committee for the past five years.

Alumna Sara was in Drake House and her grandfather, Tony, attended Exeter School from 1935-1940. Sara has attended school reunion events and is keen to inspire pupils today who want to work in the media or sport.