England's three men's singles players competing in the Yonex Canada Open are safely through the first round. But all three women's singles players went out in the first round. Picture and copyright: badmintonphoto.com

Badminton picked out as a popular sport of choice by school kids as Sports Unlimited 10-week ‘taster’ courses get half a million youngsters active outside of the school walls.

As you may be aware, the Vetting and Barring Scheme (registration with the ISA) has been put on hold by the new government and is currently being reviewed. Despite the ISA registration scheme being put on hold, the introduction of the new CRB form will still be going ahead.

Twenty20 was dismissed as a hit-and-giggle fad upon its inception, but, seven years on, its increasing influence has led to a serious overhaul of how professional coaches prepare their players and teams.

As another busy badminton season has drawn to a close, it is an appropriate time to provide an update on the developments around the Performance Centre programme along with future plans.

Leeds teenager Sarah Milne was today named in a 40-strong Team GB squad for the first Youth Olympic Games in Singapore next month. "It's a great honour to be able to represent Great Britain," said Sarah today. "I am looking forward to the challenge of competing against the top young players in the world. I hope to be able to...