Sunday, August 8, 2010

Andy Wood appointed Great Britain badminton head coach


Andy Wood has been appointed head coach of the Great Britain badminton team.

The experienced coach guided Olympic silver medallists Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms to glory on the mixed doubles world stage.

Wood, 47, was also Great Britain head coach at the Sydney and Athens Olympics and team leader in Beijing in 2008.

Badminton England chief executive Adrian Christy said: "Andy will play a pivotal role in establishing a truly world-class environment on court."

Badminton England also looks after the Great Britain badminton program and Christy has no doubt Wood's appointment will bring results.

"Our performance aspirations are all about achieving success and Andy's track record at European, Commonwealth, World and Olympic level is just the experience we were looking to secure," said Christy.

"I know he will prove a continued inspiration to our senior players as well as the next generation of talent we are very focused on developing."

In addition to his success with Robertson and Emms, Wood also coached Simon Archer and Joanne Goode to Britain's first Olympic badminton medal when they secured bronze at the Sydney Olympics.

"I am excited and challenged by this new role which allows me to be fully integrated across our performance group," said Wood.

"We have an exciting blend of talented youth and experienced achievers both within the playing squad and the coaching team.

"With everybody pulling together in an honest, driven, accountable environment then I believe we are very capable of achieving more consistent podium success on the international stage."

His first task in charge will be to take England's nine-strong squad to Copenhagen next week for intensive practice against Denmark's top players in preparation for the World Championships, which begin in Paris on 23 August.

He will then lead England's players at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October.

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