Badminton England’s next generation of players were recently put through their paces recently at a Junior Pathway Camp in Warwick.
Held over two days at the University of Warwick campus, young shuttlers currently on the national programme ranging from under-15 to under-19 level were put through their paces, with former GB national coach Stuart Wardell helping with the coaching.
Players engaged in a wide variety of activities then went beyond purely badminton, also taking part in swimming, endurance running and nutrition classes as well as other stimulating sessions.
In addition, the players were also tasked with writing out and discussing life as a full-time player, and planning out a trip abroad to play a tournament from start to finish – preparing for life on the circuit as a full-time player.
Pathway coach Kat Hurrell was delighted with the progress of the young players involved and believes that the first-class facilities at the University of Warwick will help their badminton development going forward.
She said: “It was great to be able to bring so many talented players together for the camp.
“The excellent facilities at Warwick provided an elite training environment which allowed us to deliver a range of high-intensity training sessions designed to fuel the players’ competitive spirits and to take them out of their comfort zone.
“We wanted them to work with different people to find ways to solve problems and to test their own perseverance and self-determination.
“The sessions looked at exploring the physical and mental characteristics primarily with elements of teamwork and communication intertwined with tough physical training.
“But we also made sure the players had some off-court support in areas such as performance lifestyle and practical education, on the benefits of refuelling with the correct nutrition after training to maximise benefits, as well as an early morning recovery session in the pool.
“The group rose to the challenges they were set over the weekend very well and this resulted in an extremely productive, tiring but mainly satisfying weekend!”
Players who are invited onto the pathway programme receive an individualised programme of support, discussed and agreed with a Pathway Coach, which will then be monitored throughout the year.
Wardell was also happy to see so many talented young players getting the maximum out of their time in the West Midlands.
He added: “It was great to test the players and they responded magnificently.
“We did so much work away from the court and when we did play a mini-tournament on the court, the players were mixed up in teams with other age groups, again to show character as a team with the older players helping out with the younger ones.
“That was great to see and I think everyone involved can take lots away from this camp.”
