By Michael Baws

AS exhausted Olympic medallist Alison Williamson returned to her parents' home in Church Stretton this week, the town prepared to roll out the red carpet.

Alison is to become only the second person to receive its Honorary Citizen award, and she will also have a civic reception in her honour.

Back from Athens, Alison told the Advertiser of the tension as she prepared for the final shot that won her a bronze medal for archery.

It was her fourth try at an Olympic medal when she faced Yuan Su Chi from Chinese Taipei in the play-off for third place.

Scores were level when Alison prepared for her final arrow.

"It was a high-pressure shot," she recalled. "I tried to think of the technical side of it, to execute a good shot. I wasn't frankly that good.

" I only got eight in the red. I didn't believe it was a gold shot. I thought: 'That's it. It's not enough'. "

Yuan needed a nine for her bronze, but a police siren outside distracted her. A gust of wind as her arrow sped to the target meant she registered only a seven.

"It happened so quickly," Alison said. "I did not have time to think about it. I'm over the moon, really.

"It was probably only the next day when it dawned on me what had happened. I woke up the next morning with the medal next to my bed and realised it was mine."

Alison's parents, Tom and Sue, are also archers. She started when she was six or seven.

In 1992 she competed in her first Olympics in Barcelona. Last year she qualified for lottery funding.

As she practised with the Long Mynd Archers, shooting for 30 hours a week, she also jogged, lifted weights and worked with a sports psychologist in the build-up for Athens.

Her reward was the first British women's medal for archery since 1908. Other rewards will follow soon.

Church Stretton town clerk Christine Harvey hopes her council will ratify the citizenship award at its meeting on September 13.

The only other recipient has been Alan Wildblood, when he retired after 35 years as a retained firefighter in 1999. The town hopes to organise a civic reception, which will include the girls' football team from Church Stretton School, which won the national Coca Cola Cup.

"It will be a great inspiration for them to meet Alison. We are all very proud of her," said Christine. "It should be quite an event for everyone."

Alison hopes to resume her career as a teacher, but is keen to shoot again with her club.

"Practice is important," she said. "There are no short cuts, no easy way of doing it."