The Green and Gold made their mark at the EUSA Championship as they left Lordz with the championship team trophy and 4 individual medals.
The athletes were selected to attend by British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) after their performances in national events during the 2018/19 season.
Last week, the Green and Gold faced University of West Bohemia (CZE) team in the final of the European Universities Badminton Championship away in Lodz. Hopes were high as the University of Nottingham had seen a trend, climbing up the rankings in Europe as they were 3rd in 2017, 2nd in 2018. Team #GreenandGold won the final 3-1, where they secured 1st place-making 2019 their most successful championship yet!
Notable results in the team competition were Vanessa and Tiara in the match against Koln, they confidently battled against a strong side to win their doubles. Phone Pyae Naing securing a place in the final by defeating Samson from Strasbourg in the most crucial match of the tie.
The individual event took place from the 27th to 29th June resulted with a tally of four medals.
The first gold medal was secured by Emily Westwood/ Johnnie Torjussen in the Mixed Doubles. The pair of University of Nottingham first year students won in straight sets of 21-18, 21-18.
Torjussen also took bronze in the Men’s Singles after losing out in a three-set battle against the overall winner, Jan Louda, University of West Bohemia.
Next up was Li Lian Yang, who was defending her 2018 Women’s Singles title. Li Lian secured her title in style by straight sets of 21-13, 21-19 securing the second individual gold for University of Nottingham. This also meant that Li Lian was undefeated throughout the tournament.
With gold medals already around their necks, Emily Westwood and Li Lian Yang remained focused for the Women’s Double Final. The final gold medal was earned by the pair, again not losing a set against [University] 21-15, 21-16.
Reflecting on the week, Tiara Samuels, commented,
“Personally, this was a memorable week, especially knowing that it would be the last time I would be wearing green and gold to represent the university. The team spirit on court combined with cards and crosswords off-court meant that there was endless laughter throughout the week.”
Find out more about Performance Badminton at the University of Nottingham here.
Posted on Wednesday 3rd July 2019