EAST Lancashire ice skater Stacey Kemp will be hoping to continue Britain’s medal exploits at the European Championships in Budapest, Hungary tomorrow.

The 25-year-old and her partner David King will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of British teammates Penny Coombes and Nick Buckland, who won bronze in the ice dance event earlier in the week.

The pair finished 16th out of 20 competitors in the pairs short program yesterday, meaning they took the last available place in tomorrow's final.

But Chorley’s Kemp, who is part of the Great Britain squad for next month’s Winter Olympics, won’t be too disheartened if she misses out on a place on the podium.

The pair will be hoping to find their best form ahead of the start of the Olympics, with these championships being the last major meeting before the start of the winter games in Sochi next month.

Former Blackburn College student Kemp, who is competing in her ninth European Championships, says this event is an important part of her preparations for the Olympics.

“Some teams considered not doing the Europeans as it was too close to the Olympics,” said Kemp.

“We will use it so we can look closely at any changes and things that we still need to tweak before we head out to Sochi.”

The pair have previous Olympic experience, finishing 16th in the pairs free skate event in Vancouver four years ag0.