CARDS and good luck wishes helped send Bolton's Olympic hopeful Amir Khan off on his quest for glory in Athens.

The 17-year-old boxer attended a party thrown in his honour by children's summer club School Shuttle at Church Road Primary School in Bolton on Tuesday.

The lightweight was given a send-off by 250 youngsters the day before he jetted off to a training camp in Cyprus to prepare for the Games, which begin on Friday, August 13.

Amir, from Heaton, is Britain's only boxer to qualify for the Olympics.

School Shuttle director Asid Vali said: "Amir is a former employee of ours, and it's always great to see him. He still has a lot of time for the kids. He's an exceptional lad and we wish him all the best of luck."1

Also present were the Mayor of Bolton, Cllr Prentice Howarth, and Amir's cousin, Lancashire cricketer Sajid Mahmood, who has played in England's one-day side.