WHILE members are not actually playing much badminton at the moment, Queens Badminton Club is still running and some of the club’s athletes are continuing to train really hard. 

Sarah Preece, the Club’s Head Coach tells us about her training regime:

 

How long have you been playing badminton?

I first joined Queens Badminton Club over 15 years ago, attending one session per week.  Since then I’ve continued to enjoy the sport and have been playing more and more, training several times a week with my coach, Nick Masson (Queens Badminton Club Chairman).  I now represent the county in the Devon First Team, am ranked 21st in England and love competing regularly in national (and sometimes international) tournaments!

 

What would a normal week of training have looked like for you a year ago?

If you were looking for me a year ago, a sports hall would have been a good place to look!  I was spending about 12 hours a week training on court in addition to several hours of other training and coaching.  I was also travelling to tournaments most weekends during the season (September – April).

 

How has Covid affected your sport?

Playing an indoor sport is pretty tricky in a time when government guidance prevents us from meeting others indoors!  Since March there have been times when gyms and sports halls were completely closed. At other times, sports halls have been open but I’ve been limited to training with just one other person. In addition to that, tournaments (which involved people travelling from across the country) have not been able to take place at all since March. So overall, this pandemic has had quite a significant impact on badminton.

 

Have you managed to keep training during this time?

Yes. Training has had to be adapted and looks quite different for now, but I’ve been able to keep going.  I’m thankful that Nick and I have been able to find ways to keep training – I’ve spent lots of time training in my garage, on my driveway and outside with Nick coaching via video call! I’ve lost count of the number of hours I’ve spent on the exercise bike and I’ve incorporated a lot more strength and resistance training than ever before.  It has also been great to get on court for some sessions in the times that sports halls have been open – doubles hasn’t been allowed but thankfully singles is my focus.

 

What has motivated you to keep training so hard during lockdown?

There are a number of reasons that I’ve chosen to keep training hard but mostly it’s because I enjoy it!  As for many people, it is good for my well-being to keep active and to keep developing skills and working towards my goals. Of course, I’m also looking forward to being able to compete again (whenever that may be!) and I’m training hard to be able to improve my national ranking.   I can’t wait to be able to play again but for now I’m committed to making the most of the training I can do and enjoying the process!

 

Nick Masson, Chairman of Queens Badminton Club, was full of praise for Sarah and her regime.

He said: "When people use the term sporting ambassador and role model they may overstate the impact that someone has in their sport or within the area. In Sarah’s case this could not be further from the truth.

"Badminton has been the real winner of all Sarah’s efforts and the players young and old who are members of the club. Not only does she play at a very high level, Sarah is also our Head Coach and is one of the Lead Coaches in the Exeter Performance Centre based at the University of Exeter.

"You only need to watch the faces of the players she works with to see that Sarah has also developed into an outstanding coach and one to look out for in the future.

"We are all so proud of her enthusiasm, dedication and commitment even in these challenging times. A real inspiration to the many youngsters that train on zoom every week.”