seven
04-25-2005, 06:43 AM
Times Online
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April 25, 2005
Emms and Robertson take the shuttle to world domination
By Matthew Syed
In the latest part of our Sporting Inspirations campaign to put young people in touch with their dreams, our correspondent joins the Olympic silver medal-winners at a training session for children in Milton Keynes
http://images.thetimes.co.uk/images/trans.gif
IT WAS somewhat surprising when Gail Emms left the room in a flood of tears. She had been watching a video of her Olympic exploits with a group of local youngsters during a Times-sponsored masterclass at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes, but it all proved too much for her. “Watching it again brings back all those emotions,” she said outside in the corridor. “It was an incredibly intense experience in Athens, one that I loved, but even now it is too much to take in.” Emms is a breath of fresh air compared with other sporting stars who grudgingly grant interviews and then spend their time refusing to answer any question that might elicit an interesting response. In one Sunday newspaper, she was happy to disclose the amount she paid for her three-bedroom semi in Milton Keynes, the size of her car loan and the amount she pays into her pension fund. “I do not have a problem talking about myself, ” she said. “Since the Olympics it has been nice to actually have a bit of media interest for a change.”
Nathan Robertson, the man with whom she captured Great Britain’s first Olympic badminton silver medal in the mixed doubles in Athens, is similarly open and unaffected, despite eight months of mini-stardom that might have inflated the ego of a less grounded person.
During the question-and- answer session with the youngsters, the 27-year-old allowed his more socially assertive partner to answer each question first before providing his own, more contemplative response. Where Emms does chirpy common sense, Robertson exudes quizzical angst.
Their temperaments are reflected in their contrasting playing styles. Emms stands in the forecourt, pouncing upon the shuttlecock as if it were a winning lottery ticket. The rigour of the coaching manual is discernible in every rapier-like thrust of her racket. Robertson, on the other hand, is a natural who floats around the back of the court, wielding his racket like a paintbrush.
Badminton is a beautiful sport, combining tortuous athleticism, feather-light intricacy and an endlessly shifting geometry of roof-threatening parabolas and fizzing smash shots. The rallies are just long enough to create their own mini-narratives but without ever straying into the monotony of prewar table tennis, when spectators could nip out for 15 minutes and miss little.
The only problem is that badminton is lumbered with an insane scoring system in which you can win a point only on service. The maddening consequence is that the service is liable to shift back and forth without the score changing.
Unlike in tennis, where doubles is a distraction, badminton thrives upon partnership. Doubles is more fun to watch and more fun to play. This is particularly pleasing, given that England is in the midst of a golden era for mixed doubles with Robertson and Emms on top of the world rankings, Robert Blair and Natalie Munt at No 7 and the new pairing of Anthony Clark and Donna Kellogg up to No 16.
This success has largely been achieved by virtue of lottery investment, wisely administered by Stephen Baddeley, the international player turned administrator who recently left badminton’s national governing body to work for Sport England. The expenditure on facilities, top-class coaching and sports science paid off spectacularly in Athens, when 4.5 million viewers tuned in to watch the mixed doubles final. It is likely to pay off once again at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006, when Robertson and Emms will be strong favourites. And then there is 2008 in Beijing, where they are desperate to go one better than Athens.
And then? Robertson has not ruled out continuing until 2012, when he plans to get involved on the coaching side. To judge from their rapport with the local youngsters, this is something that both would excel at. They bubbled with enthusiasm as they sparred and chatted with the 30 or so pupils from the Stantonbury Campus school in Milton Keynes, almost all of whom had watched that Olympic final on television. The youngsters were visibly inspired by the opportunity to mingle with the stars, to the extent that some of them were whacking the shuttlecock with Emms-like vigour by the end of the session.
As with any successful relationship, Emms and Robertson recognise that their chemistry requires careful nurturing. “We get on pretty well, which is important in terms of getting the best on-court performance,” Emms said. “But we also need to make sure that we have periods apart so that the dynamic remains fresh. If you spend too much time with anyone you are liable to start getting on each other’s nerves.” They were both emphatic when asked whether there was scope for their on-court relationship to stray into romantic territory. “I have a girlfriend, a Danish badminton player,” Robertson said. “Gail and I are fine as friends, but it would not work if there was anything more.” Emms, 27, who is single, concurred. “We know each other too well. Nothing has ever happened between us, despite many a drunken night out on the town,” she said.
If their form continues and their relationship stays on track, they have every chance of winning gold in Beijing. And then, at last, badminton might get the recognition it deserves.
Sport http://images.thetimes.co.uk/images/grey.gif http://images.thetimes.co.uk/images/trans.gif
April 25, 2005
Emms and Robertson take the shuttle to world domination
By Matthew Syed
In the latest part of our Sporting Inspirations campaign to put young people in touch with their dreams, our correspondent joins the Olympic silver medal-winners at a training session for children in Milton Keynes
http://images.thetimes.co.uk/images/trans.gif
IT WAS somewhat surprising when Gail Emms left the room in a flood of tears. She had been watching a video of her Olympic exploits with a group of local youngsters during a Times-sponsored masterclass at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes, but it all proved too much for her. “Watching it again brings back all those emotions,” she said outside in the corridor. “It was an incredibly intense experience in Athens, one that I loved, but even now it is too much to take in.” Emms is a breath of fresh air compared with other sporting stars who grudgingly grant interviews and then spend their time refusing to answer any question that might elicit an interesting response. In one Sunday newspaper, she was happy to disclose the amount she paid for her three-bedroom semi in Milton Keynes, the size of her car loan and the amount she pays into her pension fund. “I do not have a problem talking about myself, ” she said. “Since the Olympics it has been nice to actually have a bit of media interest for a change.”
Nathan Robertson, the man with whom she captured Great Britain’s first Olympic badminton silver medal in the mixed doubles in Athens, is similarly open and unaffected, despite eight months of mini-stardom that might have inflated the ego of a less grounded person.
During the question-and- answer session with the youngsters, the 27-year-old allowed his more socially assertive partner to answer each question first before providing his own, more contemplative response. Where Emms does chirpy common sense, Robertson exudes quizzical angst.
Their temperaments are reflected in their contrasting playing styles. Emms stands in the forecourt, pouncing upon the shuttlecock as if it were a winning lottery ticket. The rigour of the coaching manual is discernible in every rapier-like thrust of her racket. Robertson, on the other hand, is a natural who floats around the back of the court, wielding his racket like a paintbrush.
Badminton is a beautiful sport, combining tortuous athleticism, feather-light intricacy and an endlessly shifting geometry of roof-threatening parabolas and fizzing smash shots. The rallies are just long enough to create their own mini-narratives but without ever straying into the monotony of prewar table tennis, when spectators could nip out for 15 minutes and miss little.
The only problem is that badminton is lumbered with an insane scoring system in which you can win a point only on service. The maddening consequence is that the service is liable to shift back and forth without the score changing.
Unlike in tennis, where doubles is a distraction, badminton thrives upon partnership. Doubles is more fun to watch and more fun to play. This is particularly pleasing, given that England is in the midst of a golden era for mixed doubles with Robertson and Emms on top of the world rankings, Robert Blair and Natalie Munt at No 7 and the new pairing of Anthony Clark and Donna Kellogg up to No 16.
This success has largely been achieved by virtue of lottery investment, wisely administered by Stephen Baddeley, the international player turned administrator who recently left badminton’s national governing body to work for Sport England. The expenditure on facilities, top-class coaching and sports science paid off spectacularly in Athens, when 4.5 million viewers tuned in to watch the mixed doubles final. It is likely to pay off once again at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006, when Robertson and Emms will be strong favourites. And then there is 2008 in Beijing, where they are desperate to go one better than Athens.
And then? Robertson has not ruled out continuing until 2012, when he plans to get involved on the coaching side. To judge from their rapport with the local youngsters, this is something that both would excel at. They bubbled with enthusiasm as they sparred and chatted with the 30 or so pupils from the Stantonbury Campus school in Milton Keynes, almost all of whom had watched that Olympic final on television. The youngsters were visibly inspired by the opportunity to mingle with the stars, to the extent that some of them were whacking the shuttlecock with Emms-like vigour by the end of the session.
As with any successful relationship, Emms and Robertson recognise that their chemistry requires careful nurturing. “We get on pretty well, which is important in terms of getting the best on-court performance,” Emms said. “But we also need to make sure that we have periods apart so that the dynamic remains fresh. If you spend too much time with anyone you are liable to start getting on each other’s nerves.” They were both emphatic when asked whether there was scope for their on-court relationship to stray into romantic territory. “I have a girlfriend, a Danish badminton player,” Robertson said. “Gail and I are fine as friends, but it would not work if there was anything more.” Emms, 27, who is single, concurred. “We know each other too well. Nothing has ever happened between us, despite many a drunken night out on the town,” she said.
If their form continues and their relationship stays on track, they have every chance of winning gold in Beijing. And then, at last, badminton might get the recognition it deserves.