![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/i-sat-my-higher-in-turkey-then-set-a-british-record/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/130629698_exam1.jpg&description=Media caption, Sam Downie, 17, is hoping to head to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Most people never forget the build-up on exam results day but not everyone's journey to the exam room is the same. As thousands of young people find out their results, BBC Scotland spoke to three teenagers who prepared for their exams under unusual conditions. Sam Downie, 17, from Portobello in Edinburgh, was born with a rare spinal condition but took to swimming from a young age. He's been competing since he was eight and is now a prime candidate for Team GB in next year's Paralympic Games. Sam was in the middle of his exams in May when the world championships were held in Berlin. "I sat two exams at school, then left to for a training camp in Turkey where I had to sit my higher English," he said. The teenager's team manager had to train to be an invigilator in order for Sam to be able to sit his exam abroad and still compete. Image caption, Sam Downie competing in the IDM World Swimming Championships in Berlin Sam said: "My team manager had to take the paper in a locked bag in their hand luggage and keep it in a safe and check it each day to make sure no-one had access to it. "I had to sit the exam at same time as everyone else in my year so we couldn't give each other the questions. The team manager had to sit in a meeting room with me to make sure I wasn't doing anything I shouldn't be." Sam's friends thought he was lucky be sitting his exams away from school but he didn't feel that way. "I'd rather have done it in a normal classroom where it wasn't as warm and there's a bit of noise going on," he said. "I was in an empty meeting room, alone, in complete silence. But it's what I needed to do to get everything done." Sam's hard work paid off because after leaving his training camp in Turkey he went on to set a new British record in the 200m backstroke for his category, picking up a Bronze medal at the IDM World Swimming Championships in Berlin, before coming back to Scotland to si){kind=link}
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Sam Downie, 17, is hoping to head to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games
Most people never forget the build-up on exam results day but not everyone’s journey to the exam room is the same.
As thousands of young people find out their results, BBC Scotland spoke to three teenagers who prepared for their exams under unusual conditions.
Sam Downie, 17, from Portobello in Edinburgh, was born with a rare spinal condition but took to swimming from a young age.