Ahmad Saleh may be just eight years old but he is already a veteran of the Leicester Mercury Sports Awards.

He first attended the event at De Montfort Hall four years ago as part of Leicester's CKI School of Martial Arts display team.

Since then it has been the youngster's kick boxing ability which has regularly caught the eye and last year he was commended in the Junior Sportsman category.

He has been nominated for the 2011 awards, too, though his year is far from finished.

Ahmad has already enjoyed success in his favourite sports of karate and kick boxing and is also proving himself a talented boxer, as well as producing outstanding performances on the football and cricket fields.

Next week he hopes to round off the year with martial arts success at the Orange City world open martial arts championships, which are being staged in Greece.

His school, Charnwood Primary, in Spinney Hills, Leicester, is granting Ahmad time off as he looks for more medals to add to the gold he struck at the WTKA national karate championships at the start of the year.

He also reached the final in a category for older and heavier athletes but was beaten narrowly in the final.

Ahmad then added three gold medals at The Martial Arts Show Spectacular.

One section required him to perform non-stop kicks for a minute. The youngster produced an amazing 140 kicks.

A further indication of Ahmad's ability was the award of his first degree black belt this year, reward for the hard work he has put in learning a wide range of skills.

Ismail Saleh, who is the chief instructor at the CKI club, is delighted with the progress Ahmad has made and believes that there is better still to come from him.

Ismail, a former Coach of the Year in the Mercury Sports Awards, said: "In the past 12 months Ahmad has developed enormously both his kicking and stamina and he has got stronger, too.

"In some cases he is too fast for and stronger than the other boys in his sections.

"He is having to go to higher and heavier divisions.

"But Ahmad has not only improved in his favourite sport, he has also become a much better footballer and is proving an excellent boxer.

"We think he is destined to become a very exciting, world-class athlete and have already pencilled in world events in Canada and the USA for 2012."

The winners of the sports awards will be announced on January 19 at a ceremony at Leicester Tigers' Welford Road ground.

Nominations in the categories can be made here.