Athlete Goldie Sayers got young people doing "power poses" as she gave them an insight into an Olympic mindset to help them realise their goals and dreams.
The bronze medal-winning hero rallied young people at Inspire Suffolk not in education, work or training to take advantage of life's opportunities at an inspiring workshop.
The coronavirus crisis has been particularly difficult for young people, with many warning of a new "Generation Corona" disadvantaged by the pandemic.
Sayers, who won third place at the 2008 Beijing games, said it had been "more difficult for young people to make contact with potential employers" because of Covid restrictions.
But the javelin thrower urged the 100 young people she spoke to at Inspire Suffolk, in Ipswich, not to lose faith - giving them practical tips on how to set goals and learn how to build their confidence.
"There are opportunities everywhere," she said after the event for people aged 16 to 24 on Wednesday, July 28.
"I do feel sorry for young people who may have been starting in a particular career. Everyone has felt quite isolated.
"In some areas, you may have to work a little bit harder to find it and you may have to go outside your comfort zone a little bit.
"But in Suffolk there are opportunities, definitely."
Sayers, from Newmarket, said she wanted to give the youngsters some practical tips they could use in their everyday lives, rather than just give a motivational talk.
"A lot of this stuff gets bandied about, but what does it actually mean for young people?" she said.
"We talked about confidence - it's something a lot of people think you have or you don't, when actually it's a skill.
"It's not fixed and you can be confident in some areas, but not in others. You can definitely increase your confidence.
"Even if the young people might not have been interested in sport, these lessons can be applied to any area of life to be successful.
"Hopefully, everyone will have gone away with one thing they can do to get them a bit closer to a new job or an educational course."
Sizewell C works with Inspire Suffolk to help train and equip people with the skills to take up jobs at the proposed power station in the future.
EDF Energy, which is behind the Sizewell C project, funds step up to welding and step up to clean energy courses designed to introduce people to the skillsets needed.
Julia Pyke, Sizewell C director, said: “We were thrilled that Goldie agreed to work with our partners Inspire Suffolk to deliver her confidence building workshop on creating an Olympian mindset for life.
"We hope the skills the young people have learnt complement everything they do with this important local charity and set them up for success in the future.
“We want local people to make the most of the opportunities on offer in this region including the wide range of jobs and training that will be available through Sizewell C."
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