Bothwell badminton ace Kirsty Gilmour has been selected for Commonwealth Games squad

Aug 5 2010 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

Bothwell badminton ace Kirsty Gilmour has been selected for Team Scotland’s squad for the Commonwealth Games in India.

KIRSTY Gilmour will compete at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in India, after being selected for Team Scotland’s badminton squad.

The Bothwell 16-year-old will almost certainly be the youngest member of the squad when it’s officially announced later this month.

Dad Brian said it’s a dream come true for the teenager, who was originally selected to spend a week-long stint at the event in Delhi as part of Commonwealth Games Scotland’s Achieve 2014 initiative.

Brian said: “Kirsty had qualified for Achieve 2014 but three days later we heard that she had actually qualified for the badminton team for the Commonwealth Games.

“The possibility of this had been in the pipeline for some time but, to be honest, I didn’t think she would get it, that it had come too soon, and I told her not to get her hopes up.

“But those hopes have been realised, it’s like a dream come true, and I think we have to thank her new coach, Yvette Yuan Gao.”

Brian added: “It’s a great achievement and Kirsty is over the moon, telling all of her family and friends.

“This will give her tremendous experience and the full competition, rather than a token gesture of a week, will really benefit her.

“Sometimes taking part in these competitions can be daunting but I think Kirsty will take it in her stride. Kirsty is punching well above her weight; she’ll turn 17 just before the competition so I’m sure she will be the youngest member of the squad.

“This has been in the background since May and we knew it might be coming, but it also seemed too good to be true – it all depended on Commonwealth Games Scotland funding rather than BADMINTONscotland.

“Kirsty has been looking forward to this for ages, but it is the culmination of hard work – she’s been in training every day, even throughout the summer.”

The Commonwealth Games take place from October 3-14, with badminton held at the Siri Fort Sports Complex from October 4-14.