Megan Pascoe is keeping her diary clear for the autumn.

The Athens Olympics get under way on August 13 and the Paralympics start a month later. Pascoe would love to be part of the action.

At the moment it remains a dream for the 17-year-old sailor from Ardingly but that could become reality in the next few weeks.

Pascoe has always earmarked the 2008 Games as her target but next month she will attend trials in France in a bid to win a place in Great Britain's Paralympic squad for Athens.

She said: "Everything is up in the air at the moment. I will go to the selection trials in Hyeres in France next month (April 23-30).

"I have a chance of making the squad but there are five other people who will be thinking the same.

"I would love to go but my main aim is 2008. I started getting interested in the 2.4 class after the last paraylympics so I have only had four years learning about it.

"It would be unbelievable to make these Games. It is becoming more likely but the odds remain stacked against me."

Pascoe was effectively born into sailing. Her parents, Martin and Julie, both sail, as do both her brothers.

She is hemiplegic, which means she is partially disabed. Hemiplegia is paralysis of one side of the body.

Megan explained: "I have a loss of control down my right side. I can't write with my right hand but I can do other things. I have some trouble walking but not much.

"I have trouble with dinghies because I find it hard to move around a boat, which is why I sail keelboats."

The family are members of Weir Wood Sailing Club at Forest Row and Megan was sailing from eight years old before becoming really competitive at 12.

She started out in an Optimist, which is a boat used by most youngsters, before switching to the International 2.4m class in 2001.

The 2.4 is a single-handed keelboat which is raced by abled and disabled sailors but is particularly favoured by the latter as all the controls are within arms' reach.

It did not take Pascoe long to master the boat and she went to the 2002 World Championships in Holland where she finished 25th out of 40 entries.

At last year's Open world championships in Eckernforde, Germany, Pascoe finished 42nd overall and eighth disabled sailor.

After that she went to the World Disabled Championships in Athens where she came 15th out of 40 entries and she also finished first disabled helm at the 2003 national championships at Rutland Sailing Club.

She has been part of the Great Britain squad since October 2002, which means she gets funding to help her compete on the international circuit, which is important as Megan is still at college where she studies pyschology, sociology, IT and history.

Sailing, though, is the key activity in her life.

She said: "It gives me the chance to escape life. I love the tactical side of it as it uses different parts of your brain.

"It is something I can do on an equal basis with other people. The racing is great and the people who sail are a tremendous crowd.

"The club have been great. They have given me loads of support and family have supported me fully too."

Because she is only 17, Pascoe has plenty of time to achieve her goals in sailing but that does not stop her dreaming of getting the nod when the selection panel assess performances in France next month.