A TRAINEE hairdresser from Hamilton is taking her curling skills to new levels at the Youth Winter Olympics in South Korea this month.

However, 16-year-old Holly Burke is swapping her comb and heated rollers for a brush and granite stones, as she prepares to take to the ice as a member of Team GB’s six-strong all-Scottish youth curling squad.

The talented teenager, who left Hamilton Grammar last summer, will represent Great Britain alongside Dumfries teenagers Logan Carson, Archie Hyslop and Tia Laurie, Ethan Brewster, from Aberdeen and Callie Soutar, from Forfar, in the mixed rink in Gangwon, South Korea.

Glasgow Times: Holly BurkeHolly Burke (Image: South Lanarkshire Council)

Holly was inspired by the Olympics of 2018 to get into the sport, aged just 11.

Now, five years on, Holly has proven her skill on a variety of stages, leading to a call-up to the Youth Olympic squad.

A member of the Scottish National Curling Academy, and the Scottish Curling Future Leaders Programme, she has represented Scotland at the National Junior Curling Tournament mixed doubles and been placed third in the Scottish Junior Championships in both 2022 and 2023.

Glasgow Times: Holly with team-mates Logan, Archie and TiaHolly with team-mates Logan, Archie and Tia (Image: South Lanarkshire Council)

Holly balances her curling career with her studies at New College Lanarkshire, and a part-time job in South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture’s (SLLC) busy visitor centre café at Chatelherault Country Park.

There are an estimated 1.5 million curlers across Scotland at all levels, many of whom, like Holly, are shrugging off the sport’s often old-fashioned image.

Holly said: “Curling is a strategic, fiercely competitive and physically challenging sport, which requires real athletic ability to be successful at the highest level. I would urge all ages to get involved - it's an amazing sport.

Glasgow Times: Holly BurkeHolly Burke (Image: South Lanarkshire Council)

“I feel incredibly honoured to be able to represent my country at the Youth Winter Olympic Games. To be selected is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I'm so grateful for."

Holly’s delighted parents, Caroline, and Paul are supporting her at the Games, which start on January 19.

Caroline said: “We are so proud of her; she has worked very hard for this opportunity and we are grateful to both NCL and SLLC for the flexibility they have given to allow her to balance studies, work and the sporting opportunity of a lifetime.”

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South Lanarkshire Council Provost, Margaret Cooper, said: “South Lanarkshire has a very long and successful reputation in sporting excellence, across a wide range of sports, and Holly is proudly adding youth curling to that list.

“I have to also highlight the hard work, day in and day out that goes into creating this new generation of athletes and commend their clubs, coaches, and families for the commitment they put into supporting our young people to reach this very highest level of competition.

“On behalf of the people of South Lanarkshire, I wish Holly every success in South Korea and in all of her future endeavours.”