STOURBRIDGE tennis players gave youngsters still suffering the aftermath of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster a big breath of fresh air when they hosted a visit to their club.

Members of Wollaston Lawn Tennis Club welcomed 24 children from Belarus to their base, in the countryside off Prestwood Drive, Stourton, for an action-packed day.

The children started with tennis activities under the instruction of club coach Richard Cartwright - followed by an England v Belarus football match.

And, to round it all off, they were treated to a barbecue and ice cream.

Belarus, where the children live, received more than 70 per cent of the radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear explosion in April 1986 and thousands are born with thyroid or bone cancer and leukaemia or go on to develop it later in life.

Twenty-four youngsters visited the area for a month thanks to the Chernobyl Children's Lifeline charity, organised by Ann Becke, from Kinver.

It is the third year running that Wollaston Tennis Club has hosted the children during the annual visits, which allow the children to spend a month breathing in clean air and eating good food to boost their immune system.

Chairman John Cutler said: “It is great to have the opportunity of hosting the children again.

"Our members, who volunteered to help on the day, enjoyed getting involved as much as the children who visited.

"Members who couldn't make the event helped in other ways, donating money and items which the children take home with them."