Six of the best…
A fantastic weekend for the Academy taking 6 golds, 2 Silvers and 4 Bronze medals. It started on the Saturday with Elliot Harris winning gold in the boys singles at the Bournemouth U17 Silver. He then partnered up with Alice Torjussen to take the gold in the mixed doubles too. At the same tournament Amber Lam Reached the semi finals of the girls singles taking a bronze medal and Adam Lam went one further to take a Silver in the boys doubles.
On the Sunday it was the Essex U17 Gold. Connor Bambrick put in an amazing performance claiming Bronze in the boys singles, Silver in the boys doubles and to make sure he got the full collection, Gold in the mixed doubles. In the boys doubles Sean Vendy took Gold after beating Connor in the final and Mark Sadler had to settle with Bronze with a defeat from Connor.
It was then up to Johnnie Torjussen to take the final gold in the boys singles at the Wycombe U13 Gold.
A great weekend and many more to come…
World Class Rajiv Ouseph joins the Academy…
If the goal for English badminton is to produce a future singles world star, well the Academy is doing all they can to fulfil this goal. Academy players will now have the opportunity to be coached and train alongside England number 1 and 2010 Commonwealth Games Men’s Singles Bronze medallist Rajiv Ouseph.
Rajiv will make a big impact on all Academy singles players as his knowledge and wisdom of the game is something that money just can’t buy and we are privilege and honoured that he is part of the team.
The future looks bright for Academy players…
2011 U17 European Junior Championships
Congratulations and well done to Sean Vendy for being selected to represent England at the European Juniors.
Team England young guns win gold in Denmark…
It all came down to young boys pairing of Sean Vendy and Ben Lane – the ever reliable duo – to play out for team glory.
An inspirational 21-13 first end win put the English pair firmly in the driving seat but drama was still to come. The highly rated Danish pair of Mathias Bay Smith and Mikkel Overgaard pulled clear to 19-14 in the 2nd , seemingly to take the deciding 9th match to a ‘winner takes all’ 3rd end.
But Vendy and Lane simply never know when they are beaten and clawed back point by point to draw to 20-20 – and their heroic effort was complete as they chalked up 27-25 to take the set, the tie and the title.
Kit is full of Gold….
Only playing his third Badminton England tournament Kit Clement Dawson took the Kent U13 Silver boys singles by storm. After some very tight matches Kit showed his skills and mental ability by taking the gold medal.
Absolutely fantastic result for all the hard work and effort which kit has put in over the last 6 months.
Brodie & Sean win their first U19 at 15….
On the 8th October 2011 Brodie Miller (14) and Sean Vendy(15) played the U19 Worchestershire mixed doubles. After some comfortable matches they reached the semi finals to play fellow Academy player Rory Kitchen. The match went to three ends but Brodie & Sean ran away with the third. In the final there was a slight loss of concentration but they came away with the gold medal.
Sean also reached the 1/4 finals of the boys singles loosing to the number 1 seed 21-19, 22-20.
Great tournament especially playing three years above there age group.
A Golden weekend…
Harrison Simcock started the weekend off by setting the standard in the U17 Essex Silver. Without dropping a set he drove through his opponents giving them little opportunity to beat him. After reaching the final he carried on his dominance and took the final in two straight sets.
This then set Lara Molloy up to win her first girls singles Gold at the Essex U15 Gold tournament. Once again Lara never dropped a set and showed how much work she has put in over the last few months.
Last but at no means least Amber Lam had to find a new partner for the girls doubles as Alice Torjussen had to pull out due to injury. This obviously was not a problem as she stepped up and took the gold medal.
Other results over the weekend were: Neelam Kaur won the Silver medal in the girls singles in the U17 Essex Silver. David Robertson and Kaylan Sutton-Ziaian also took a Bronze in the boys doubles and Kit Clement Dawson took his first Badminton England medal. He won a bronze in the boys singles at the U13 Notts Bronze.
What a great weekend…
Johnnie just falls short of 3 Golds…
Johnnie Torjussen was playing the first U13 Gold tournament of the season in Cheltenham. Johnnie played well to reach the boys singles final but unfortunately he just couldn’t get his game together in the final and had to come away with the silver medal. After struggling in the singles he never made the same mistake again and took the boys doubles and mixed in style. Not a bad start as Johnnie spent most of the summer with a broken arm, so well done Johnnie great work.
Vendy makes it a hat-trick of golds as the curtain comes down on the UK School Games
SEAN Vendy admitted he had to pinch himself after he swept the badminton board to bring the curtain down on the Sainsbury’s UK School Games in Sheffield.
THREE’S THE MAGIC NUMBER: Sean Vendy and Brodie Miller celebrate their mixed doubles gold, Vendy’s third and final title at the Sainsbury’s UK School Games
The 15-year-old was never far away from the podium at the English Institute of Sport on Sunday, getting the ball rolling by beating Scotland’s Josh Neil in the boys singles final.
But he wasn’t done there, returning to the table alongside Ben Lane to win the boys double, before rounding off a great weekend with victory in the mixed doubles alongside Brodie Miller.
And despite claiming the hat-trick, Vendy insists he is far from done with the competitions coming thick and fast.
“I’m pretty speechless to be honest,” he said. “I came here not expecting anything really being a year younger than most other players.
“I just wanted to play well and do the best that I could and see what happens. I didn’t expect three golds at all.
“Next weekend I’ve got an English U17 tournament in Milton Keynes, I’m not expecting anything in that but we’ll see what happens. – especially after this great result.
“I think this competition is amazing with all the courts and umpires, they do such a good job here in Sheffield, you don’t get it everywhere but it gives you a real insight into what it would be like further up.
“The atmosphere is good too even if it’s a bit shocking at the start but you get used to it after a while.
“A medal at the Olympics is my highest ambition. I want to be a professional badminton player, but we’ll see what happens, although this does give me a lot of confidence.”
Brodie also took a Silver in the Girls doubles. Unfortunately Harrison Simcock damaged his finger before the individual events and had to pull out of the boys singles. Some how he still managed to hold his racket and pick up a Bronze medal in the boys doubles.
Harrison, Sean and Brodie were also part of the England team which took the Silver medal in the Team event.
Medals:
Sean Vendy – Gold – Boys Singles – Gold – Boys Doubles – Gold Mixed Doubles – Team – Silver
Harrison Simcock – Bronze – Boys Doubles – Team – Silver
Brodie Miller – Girls Doubles – Silver – Mixed Doubles – Gold – Team – Silver
Total – 4 x Gold – 4 x Silver – 1 x Bronze
Sean Vendy selected for Lagenfield…
U15 number 1 Sean Vendy has been selected to represent England at the U17 Lagenfield in August. Sean will be looking to put in some strong performances to set himself up for a good international season…
Good luck Sean and a massive well done…
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