Gail Emms
Personal information
Birth name	Gail Elizabeth Emms
Born	(1977-07-23) 23 July 1977 (age 34) Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England
Height	1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)
Country	England
Handedness	Right
Coach	Andy Wood, Julian Robertson
Mixed & Women's Doubles
Highest Ranking	1 (in XD)
Current Ranking	6 (in XD)[1] (17 April 2008)
Medal record Badminton Competitor for  United Kingdom Olympic Games Silver 2004 Athens Mixed doubles Competitor for  England World Championships Gold 2006 Madrid Mixed Doubles Commonwealth Games Gold 2002 Manchester Mixed Team Gold 2006 Melbourne Mixed doubles Silver 2006 Melbourne Mixed team Bronze 2002 Manchester Women's doubles Bronze 2006 Melbourne Women's doubles European Championships Gold 2004 Geneva Mixed doubles Gold 2006 Den Bosch Women's doubles
BWF Profile

Gail Elizabeth Emms MBE (born July 23, 1977 in Hitchin, Hertfordshire) is a retired English badminton player who has achieved international success in doubles tournaments.

Her best results were winning gold at the 2006 World Championships in Madrid, 2004 European Championships in Geneva, and a silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games, partnering Nathan Robertson in the mixed doubles. At the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester she won a bronze medal with Joanne Goode in the women's doubles and won gold as part of the England team in the mixed team event. She also took the World Badminton Grand Prix title in 2003 with Nathan Robertson. In the English National Badminton Championships she won the mixed doubles three times and the women's doubles twice.

Early life[link]

A badminton player since the age of four, Emms was first chosen to represent England in 1995 and regularly played for her country until her retirement. She attended the Dame Alice Harpur School in Bedford, a private girls' school. In 1998 she graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Sports Science from Kingston University.^[2] She is sponsored by badminton equipment company Wilson.

2004 Summer Olympics Athens[link]

Emms competed in badminton at the 2004 Summer Olympics in women's doubles with partner Donna Kellogg. They defeated Koon Wai Chee and Li Wing Mui of Hong Kong in the first round but were defeated by Zhao Tingting and Wei Yili of China in the second round.

She also competed in mixed doubles with Robertson. They had a bye in the first round and defeated Björn Siegemund and Nicol Pitro of Germany in the second. In the quarterfinals, Emms and Robertson beat Chen Qiqiu and Zhao Tingting of China 15-8, 17-15 to advance to the semifinals. There, they beat Jonas Rasmussen and Rikke Olsen of Denmark 15-6, 15-12. In the final, they lost to the Chinese pair Zhang Jun and Gao Ling 15-1, 12-15, 15-12 to finish with the silver medal.

2006[link]

The 2006 Commonwealth Games brought Emms a Silver in the team event, a Bronze in the women's doubles (with Donna Kellogg) and a Gold in the mixed doubles (with Nathan Robertson). An additional gold together with Robertson followed at the 2006 IBF World Championships.

2008 Summer Olympics, Beijing[link]

Emms participated in the women's doubles with partner Donna Kellogg only to be knocked out in the first round by the Chinese pair Wei Yili and Zhao Tingting.

Emms then went on to win her first match in the mixed doubles with Nathan Robertson against the Chinese world number 2 pair. Emms and Robertson won the first game 21-16 before Gao Ling and her new partner Zheng Bo hit back to win the second 21-16.

The British duo found themselves 12-17 down in the decider only to recover to win 21-19.

Emms and Robertson lost out on a medal at the quarter final stage against the world number 10 pair Lee Yong-dae and Lee Hyo-jung. The Korean pair then went on to win the gold medal.

Emms retired after the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.^[3]

Personal life[link]

Emms was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2009 Birthday Honours.^[4]

Emms gave birth to her first child, a son, in March 2010.^[5]

She was elbowed in the face by Shem Doran in May 2012. She wasn't pleased.

Record against selected opponents[link]

Mixed Doubles results with former partner Nathan Robertson against Super Series finalists, Worlds Semi-finalists, and Olympic quarterfinalists.^[6]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Emms's Official website
• BadmintonEngland Profile

Nathan Robertson
Personal information
Born	(1977-05-30) May 30, 1977 (age 35) Nottingham, England
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	82 kg (180 lb; 12.9 st)[1]
Country	England
Handedness	Right
Coach	Julian Robertson
Mixed & Men's doubles
Highest Ranking	1 (in XD) 4 (in MD)
Current Ranking	9 (in XD) 56 (in MD) (February, 2011[2])
Medal record Men's badminton Competitor for  United Kingdom Olympic Games Silver 2004 Athens Mixed doubles Competitor for  England World Championships Gold 2006 Madrid Mixed doubles Commonwealth Games Gold 2006 Melbourne Mixed doubles Silver 2010 Delhi Men's doubles Silver 2010 Delhi Mixed doubles Silver 2006 Melbourne Mixed team Silver 1998 Kuala Lumpur Mixed doubles Bronze 2010 Delhi Mixed team Bronze 2002 Manchester Men's doubles Bronze 1998 Kuala Lumpur Men's doubles
BWF Profile

Nathan James Robertson (born May 30, 1977 in Nottingham) is an English badminton player who has achieved international success in both the men's events and the mixed doubles event. He was educated at Dayncourt School Specialist Sports College.

Career[link]

2004[link]

His best results include winning gold at the 2004 European Championships in Geneva, and a silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games, both partnering Gail Emms in the mixed doubles. He has won six medals at the Commonwealth Games, and has won the last four men's doubles (with Anthony Clark) and the last two mixed doubles (with Gail Emms) at the English National Badminton Championships.

2004 Summer Olympics[link]

Robertson competed in badminton at the 2004 Summer Olympics in men's doubles with partner Anthony Clark. They defeated Sudket Prapakamol and Patapol Ngernsrisuk of Thailand in the first round, then were defeated in the round of 16 by Eng Hian and Flandy Limpele of Indonesia, who had previously represented England for a brief period.

He also competed in mixed double's with Emms. They had a bye in the first round and defeated Björn Siegemund and Nicol Pitro of Germany in the second. In the quarterfinals, Robertson and Emms beat Chen Qiqiu and Zhao Tingting of China 15-8, 17-15 to advance to the semifinals. There, they beat Jonas Rasmussen and Rikke Olsen of Denmark 15-6, 15-12. In the final, they lost to Chinese pair Zhang Jun and Gao Ling 15-1, 12-15, 15-12 to finish with the silver medal.

2005 World Championships[link]

At the 2005 World Championships, he and Emms began the tournament as Number 1 seeds. However, after getting a bye into the second round, he received an ankle injury during practice and they were forced to withdraw.

2006[link]

The 2006 Commonwealth Games brought Robertson a Silver in the team event and a Gold in the mixed doubles with Emms.

The same year, he won the gold medal at the 2006 IBF World Championships together with Emms. They beat Anthony Clark and Donna Kellogg 21-15, 21-12 in the final.

2008 Beijing Games[link]

Emms and Robertson did well in their first match in the mixed doubles with a win over the Chinese pairing who were world number 2. The 2006 world champions took the first game 21-16 before Gao Ling and Zheng Bo hit back to win the second 21-16.

The British duo found themselves 12-17 down in the decider only to show great powers of recovery to triumph 21-19.

Along with his partner, Gail Emms, they lost out on a medal at the quarter final stage.

2009 World Badminton Championship[link]

Robertson was part of the English team forced to withdraw from the 2009 BWF World Championships held in Hyderabad, India because of a terrorist threat.^[3]

Racket[link]

Nathan Robertson uses the Carlton Powerblade Tour racket.

References[link]

External links[link]

• BWF Profile
• Badminton England Profile

Zheng Bo (simplified Chinese: 郑波; traditional Chinese: 鄭波; pinyin: Zhèng Bō; born November 26, 1983) is a male badminton player from Hunan, People's Republic of China.^[1]

Olympic medal record
Competitor for  China
Men's badminton
World Championships
Gold	2010 Paris	Mixed Doubles
Bronze	2003 Birmingham	Men's Doubles

Career[link]

A doubles specialist, Zheng won men's doubles at the 2003 Indonesia Open with Sang Yang. Zheng and Sang also secured the winning point against Denmark in the final of the 2004 Thomas Cup, to clinch China's first men's world team title since 1990. Most of his international titles, however, have come in mixed doubles. Zheng won the 2002 French Open Zhang Yawen and the 2006 Hong Kong Open with Zhao Tingting. His other mixed doubles titles, all in partnership with doubles maestro Gao Ling, include the 2006 Asian Games, the 2007 China Masters, the prestigious All-England Championships in both 2007 and 2008; and the Japan (2007), German (2007), Korea (2007), Malaysia (2007), and Indonesia (2007, 2008) Opens. Zhang and Gao were silver medalists behind Indonesia's Nova Widianto and Lilyana Natsir at the 2007 BWF World Championships in Kuala Lumpur. They were upset in the round of 16 at the 2008 Beijing Olympics by former world champions Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms. Associated with Ma Jin, Zheng won the Mixed Doubles title at the 2010 BWF World championships.

References[link]

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Gao Ling
Personal information
Born	(1979-03-14) March 14, 1979 (age 33) Wuhan, Hubei, China
Height	1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Weight	58 kg (130 lb; 9.1 st)
Country	China
Women's & mixed doubles
Highest Ranking	1 (in XD)[1]
Current Ranking	2 (in WD) 1 (in XD) (August 30, 2007)
BWF Profile

Gao Ling (Chinese: 高崚; pinyin: Gāo Líng; born March 14, 1979 in Wuhan, Hubei; China) is a female badminton player from the People's Republic of China.

Career[link]

Noted for her consistency, anticipation, forecourt prowess, and sporting smile, Gao is unarguably, to many fans, the most successful doubles specialists in the history of women's badminton. In addition, she earned the most Olympic medals in recorded history in badminton. At one time or another she has won titles at almost every top tier tournament in the world. Gao has earned four gold medals (among nine medals in total) at the BWF World Championships, three of them in women's doubles with Huang Sui (2001, 2003, and 2006) and one of them in mixed doubles with Zhang Jun (2001). She and Zhang Jun also won consecutive gold medals in mixed doubles at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, overcoming severe tests in both. Gao has not earned an Olympic gold medal in women's doubles, a relative gap in her resume, but earned a bronze medal in 2000 with Qin Yiyuan, and a silver medal with Huang Sui in 2004. From 2001 through 2006 she and Huang also captured a record six consecutive women's doubles titles at the venerable All-England Championships. Their All-England streak was finally broken in the semifinals of the 2007 tournament by fellow countrywomen Zhang Yawen and Wei Yili. Gao has also shared five All-England mixed doubles titles, three with Zhang Jun (2001, 2003, and 2006), and two with Zheng Bo (2007 and 2008). She has been a member of the perennial world champion Chinese Uber Cup (women's international) team since 2000.

References[link]

Cited

External links[link]

• Chinese Olympic Committee page

Chen Qiqiu
Personal information
Born	(1978-01-04) January 4, 1978 (age 34) Meizhou, Guangdong, China
Country	China
Mixed doubles
Highest Ranking	2
BWF Profile

Chen Qiqiu (simplified Chinese: 陈其遒; traditional Chinese: 陳其遒; pinyin: Chén Qíqiú; born January 4, 1978 in Meizhou, Guangdong, China) is a former male badminton player from the People's Republic of China. He is now a doubles coach for the Chinese national team.

Career[link]

A doubles specialist who has paired with a variety of partners, Chen won men's doubles at the Thailand Open in 1999 and the Malaysia Open in 2002. He won mixed doubles at the Polish (2000), Thailand (2003), and Denmark (2004) Opens. He was also a runner-up in mixed doubles at the prestigious All-England Championships in 2003 with Zhao Tingting, the partner with whom he had his greatest success. They were bronze medalists at the 2003 IBF World Championships and quarterfinalists at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

External links[link]

• BWF Player Profile

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