Badminton star Kirsty Gilmour enjoyed success in 2009

Dec 31 2009 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

BOTHWELL teenager Kirsty Gilmour has enjoyed the best year of her budding badminton career in 2009.

But dad Brian reckons she will only get better.

It’s been something of a banner year for Kirsty in 2009, who won the Under-15 Quadrangular Girls’ Singles and was a doubles finalist, before winning the AROS Cup Girls’ Singles Under-16 title in Denmark.

At under-17 level Kirsty won Scottish National Girls’ Singles and Mixed Doubles titles, UK Games Girls’ Singles and Langenfield Cup Girls’ Singles.

Despite only turning 16 in September, Kirsty then moved up to Under-19 level where she won the Scottish National Girls’ Singles crown.

Impressively Kirsty also reached the Under-17 European Championships Girls’ Singles quarter-final and progressed to the same stage in the Scottish International Women’s Doubles.

Kirsty was an Under-19 Belgian Junior Girls’ Singles runner-up, and was runner-up in the UK School Games Under-17 Girls’ Singles before winning the Doubles.

Brian said: “The overall aim is the 2014 Commonwealth Games but Kirsty wants to take part next year and there’s a chance she might be able to.

“She’s been taking part in European competitions to give her some experience of playing against senior women, but it’s up to the Commonwealth Games Committee, as opposed to BADMINTONscotland.

“To get that she has to be in the European top 50 and Kirsty has no chance of achieving that, but if they consider her to be promising enough and with a future medal chance then they’ll send her, no matter what.

“If that were to happen it would be fantastic and a great experience. It would set Kirsty up for the next tournament because she would be able to relax a bit, knowing what was coming.”

However, Brian (48) isn’t putting the cart before the horse and knows Kirsty has plenty of time.

He said: “Right now it’s all about concentrating on the right training and getting better – Kirsty has years ahead of her so there’s no hurry.

“Kirsty has only just turned senior and she’s not yet getting the results she would like, but she’s going into these competitions and getting through a few rounds.

“It’s important for her to use this as a stepping stone and show that she can play at that standard.

“It’s a very difficult standard to play at, and Kirsty’s doing well for a 16-year-old, to say the least.

“She’s never turned up and just gone out of a competition, she is beating players who are older and more experienced.

“But I prefer it that she’s not at the top, because that gives her something to grab at and to take a target off.

“Kirsty’s beating some of the Danish girls, and some of them are beating her, and that’s the target at the moment – that and the number two spot in Scotland at senior level.

“She’ll take it one thing at a time and when results aren’t great she’s got to learn to cope with that and bounce back.

“But I don’t think she’ll have a problem with that.”