REBECCA Redfern thanked all those who voted for her as she was named The Advertiser’s Sports Personality of the Year for 2015.

The gifted swimmer pipped athlete Jo Frost by a tiny margin, getting 34 per cent of the vote compared to the Bromsgrove and Redditch AC member who obtained 32 per cent.

The Droitwich High School pupil, who juggles her GCSE studies with her dreams of qualifying for the Rio Paralympics this year, said: “I would like to thank everyone who has voted for me.

“It’s great to know that I’ve got so many people getting behind and supporting me.

“The vote was very exciting at the end, we kept watching as the clock ticked down.”

Droitwich boxer Sian O’Toole got 16 per cent of the vote, followed by rower Lauren Rowles and racketlon star Lauren Whiteman.

Redfern had a brilliant 2015 and was in fine form at the Sainsbury’s Youth Games, securing gold in the SB13 100m breaststroke, setting a British record, and 50m freestyle.

She has also won gold at the ASA National Championships.

Redfern smashed the European record at the English Federation of Disability Sport Nationals in Manchester and has been selected for the IPC European Championships.

Now she’s setting her sights on qualifying for the Rio Paralympics at the British Champions in Glasgow.

She said: “It’s going to a challenge to balance by studies and my training but it would be a dream to compete in Rio."