Gail Emms - GBR

Shoes: 4:SYS Badminton

Date of Birth: 23rd July 1977

Place of birth: Hitchin, Hertfordshire

Living: Milton Keynes

Right/Left hand: Right

Height: 5ft 3.5in

Racket: Carlton

Sponsors: Carlton, Hi-Tec, Ashaway

Highest world ranking: 1 Mixed Doubles (April/May 2003, September 2006)

Highest national ranking: 1 Women's and Mixed Doubles

Official website: www.gailemms.com

About me on court

Event(s): Mixed doubles and women's doubles

Coach: Andy Wood

Partner(s): Nathan Robertson, Donna Kellogg

County/Team: Hvidovre BC (Copenhagen) and Hertfordshire

Started badminton at age: 4

How I got started: Parents gave me a cut down racket and threw shuttles to me
Ambition as badminton player: Win an Olympic medal (which I have just done in Athens 2004, a silver in mixed doubles with Nathan Robertson), World Champinhip medal and All England title

First represented England: 1995 v China.

Season's best performance: 2004 European Championship - Mixed Doubles; 2004 Olympic silver medal - Mixed Doubles (Britain's first badminton silver in the Olympics); 2005 All England Championships with Nathan Robertson.

Major national achievements: four national titles in mixed (with three different partners) and three in women's doubles (with three different partners)

Major international achievements: Mixed: -2001 Dutch Open and BMW Open winner, 2002 Malaysian Open winner, 2004 Thailand Open winner, 2004 European Championships gold. 2002 Commonwealth team gold and women's doubles bronze.

Biggest disappointment: Not winning the Commonwealth mixed doubles title in Manchester in 2002

Favourite tournament: All England

Most admired player: Ra Kyung Min

Toughest opponent: Kim Dong Moon

Best performance of career: Beating Kim Dong Moon in Thailand Open 2003; Silver medal in Athens Olympics with Nathan Robertson.

Major national achievements: 3 times Mixed Ladies and twice Women's

The one change I would make to improve my sport: The same prizemoney as tennis. Yippee - I'd be rich!

About me off court

My occupation/ professional qualification: Professional badminton player and BSc Honours Degree in Sports Science from Kingston University

When not playing I like to: Play hockey, do yoga, watch DVDs, catch up with friends

Most embarrassing thing happening to me: Turning up for a quarterfinal match in Indonesian Open with 1 shoe.

Favourite food: Toast and marmite

Favourite city or country: New York and Canada

Favourite holiday destination: Ski-ing in French Alps

Superstition: "Lucky" socks, hairband, grips, rackets

If not badminton, then I would be: Ruling the world!

In 10 years' time: Still ruling the world (Mmwah, mmwah!). Only joking. I will be retired and living the life of luxury in my villa in the South of France ....yeh, in my dreams!

England Nationals in Manchester- Feb 07

After flying through to the finals for the England Nationals in Manchester in February 07, the champions were stopped by their great friends Anthony Clark and Donna Kellogg; who had never beaten them at a tournament before. World Champions Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms were disappointed after losing at the finals- 23-21, 14-21, 22-20- a very close game.

It was Robertson's and Emms' first loss to domestic opposition in all that time - a sequence involving something like 60 matches - and it happened on the first occasion a world final has ever been repeated in an English national final.

After playing the mixed doubles, Gail went on to play the Women's doubles with partner Donna Kellogg. The match against Munt and Nicholas lasted 34 minutes with 2 sets (21-17, 21- 17). Both players were exhausted after playing against each other previously in the Mixed Doubles but worked well together to beat Munt and Nicholas in straight sets.

Congratulations Gail!

Djarum Indonesian Open in Jakarta

Hi-Tec sponsored Emms and Donna Kellogg were through to the semi-finals after beating Singapore's seventh seeds Jiang Yanmei and Li Yujia. It was Gail's chance to fight back after the Chinese semi-finalists beat her and Nathan Robertson in the second round.

European champions Gail Emms and Donna Kellogg went down to China's Zhao Tingting and Yang Wei in a 2 set match with scores 21-15, 21-11 in the semi-finals of the womens' doubles at the Djarum Indonesian Open in Jakarta.

Although falling in the semis, Gail must keep her form into the Sudirman Cup in Glasgow from June 11-17, especially as England are in the same group 1A as China.

Gail Emms won the Surdiman Cup mixed doubles with Nathan Robertson in Glasgow.