Gilmour's got winning in the blood – doesn't it just show

Published on Sunday 15 November 2009 23:04

KIRSTY Gilmour has not long turned 16, but sometimes she feels like she already has a lifetime of badminton experience behind here. Her father, Brian, was the national junior coach, and her uncle, David Gilmour, won 50 Scottish caps between 1989 and 2008.

Some of her earliest memories are of being taken to tournaments to watch family members compete. Now, though, it is the turn of her relations to watch Kirsty in competition.

Gilmour, from Bothwell in Lanarkshire, has been earmarked for possible selection for Team Scotland at next year's Commonwealth Games in Delhi. This, combined with some impressive recent performances, has led to her being named as the Clydesdale Bank Athlete of the Month for November.

"Even when I first saw Kirsty as a 13-year-old she had a really mature understanding of the game," Julie Hogg, the Scotland junior squad coach, said. "She's professional in her approach to all aspects of badminton, all the small things that make a big difference.

"And she's always had the ability to work really hard. She's on our long list for Delhi, so if she can do well in the next couple of senior tournaments which are coming up she has the potential to be in the team."

Gilmour herself takes the long view. Delhi would be a useful experience, but she has other, more distant targets in her sights. "It would be a great opportunity to go to Delhi and get some experience which would stand me in good stead for Glasgow 2014, where I would love to get a medal," she said.

"I am even hoping I might just make the team for the London 2012 Olympics, although that might be a little too soon. The competition is pretty tough and there are some English girls a year older than me who are very good."

The Scottish under-19 champion for the last two years, Gilmour attends the Glasgow School of Sport at Bellahouston Academy, and is studying for highers in Maths, English and PE. She is coached by Craig Robertson, who won bronze at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester seven years ago, and she is confident her teachers and coach have helped her strike a good balance between sport and academic work.

"They are a lot more understanding about our needs to go training and getting time off for competitions, whilst still making sure we keep up with our work," she said. "My coach even makes me take my homework with me when I am away."

One of her best performances in recent months also took place in one of the most relevant settings. In early September, she won the UK Schools Games singles title. It was her first experience of a multi-sport games, and one she hopes will be valuable if she does make it into the Scotland team for October's Commonwealth Games.

"The UK School Games was great, with lots of people turning up from different places all in team kit," she added. "You go and compete with the badminton people and you get to watch and mix with other sports."

&#149 Each month between September 2009 and July 2010 a Clydesdale Bank Athlete of the Month will be selected by a CGS judging panel from nominations made by the 17 participating sports. Swimmer Hannah Miley and hammer-thrower Mark Dry were the joint inaugural winners of the award last month.

&#149 Gilmour, the No.2 seed, and Matthew Carder both lost in the quarter-finals of the singles at the European under-17 Championships at Medvode in Slovenia. Gilmour lost 14-21, 17-21 to the Danish No.5 seed, Line Kjaersfeldt, while South Queensferry's Carder was also beaten by a player from Denmark, the No.2 Kim Bruun winning 21-11, 21-13.