Her forays into journalism have a habit of drawing blushes from those close to her, but Pippa Middleton may have surpassed herself by describing a schoolgirl crush on one of her teachers in an article for The Spectator magazine.

The Duchess of Cambridge’s sister, who was asked to write about her memories of school sports, reminisces

about her ‘‘undeniably fanciable’’ hockey coach, Richard Markham.

In the same article Miss Middleton describes her sister running in a cross-country race, wearing ‘‘tiny athletic shorts’’ and ‘‘caked in mud from head to toe’’.

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While the Duchess is used to her sister’s mildly embarrassing disclosures in print, Mr Markham may regret the timing of his own moment in the spotlight.

The married father of two, a former Welsh international hockey player, started a new job this week as head of a private school in Hertfordshire, where his attempts to impose himself on the pupils are unlikely to be helped by the recollections of his former charge.

Miss Middleton, 29, writes: ‘‘When I close my eyes and think about school sports, I envisage myself on the hockey pitch, stick in hand, a luminous gumshield locked on to my chops and a bandanna across my forehead ... I can also hear the booming voice of Mr Markham, our fierce but undeniably fanciable coach, urging us all on.’’

Mr Markham, 41, spent most of his teaching career at Marlborough College in Wiltshire, where he taught history to both Middleton girls. He also taught history of art, the subject which the Duchess studied at university, as well as being the hockey master.

He left Marlborough at the end of last term and has just started a as principal of the £14,379-a-year Hockerill Anglo-European College in Bishop’s Stortford, Herts. The school’s chairman of governors, Sally Havers, described him as ‘‘a strong leader’’ with ‘‘intellectual clout and integrity’’.

On Wednesday night Mr Markham, who played hockey for Oxford University and represented Wales in the 1998 Commonwealth Games, refused to be drawn on Miss Middleton’s revelations. ‘‘I am unable to comment on former pupils,’’ he said.

In her ‘‘confessions of a sporty schoolgirl’’ Miss Middleton, who was captain of the school hockey team, says she was always desperate to impress her father, Michael, as well as the boys watching from the sidelines.

Turning to cross country, she says that while some girls would pretend to be ill to avoid the gruelling races, ‘‘we Middleton girls were always at the starting line - albeit reluctantly - fuelled by Lucozade tablets and bananas. Rain was inevitable and we’d get caked in mud from head to toe, in our tiny athletic shorts, white Aertex and all.’’

She recalls doing well at cross country thanks to her ‘‘endurance and sturdy ’piano legs’?’’, and remains a keen long-distance runner today. On the netball court, her small physique helped her get past ‘‘the bigger-chested girls’’, while she used her ‘‘derriere for defence’’ because ‘‘my ’chest’ hadn’t developed back then’’.

The worst ‘‘horror’’ of school sports, however, was the swimming gala, where ‘‘everyone had to walk around sheepishly in tight Speedo bathing suits and streamlined swimming caps’’ and endured ‘‘awkward communal showers’’.

Miss Middleton, who is keen on journalism as a career, already has a column in Waitrose Kitchen magazine, is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair and published a much-maligned party planning book, Celebrate, last year.

The Telegraph, London

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Feeling the crush of Pippa’s pen: her ’fanciable’ hockey teacher

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