The Edinburgh Reporter December 2023

THIS TALENTED quartet

dominated the under-14

events when the Lothian

Schools badminton

championships took place

in Penicuik.

They were, left to right,

Maggie Wang (George

Heriot’s, girls’ doubles),

Sophie Walker (Penicuik

High, runner-up in both

doubles events), Emma

Joshua (Mary Erskine,

triple champion) and Amy

Hunter (Craigmount High,

runner-up in singles and

girls’ doubles).

The seniors event also

took place and included in

the prize winning group

are: Aryan Anirhuddan

(Stewart’s- Melville), David

Campbell (Dunbar

Grammar), Lucy Degg

(North Berwick High),

Emma Joshua (Mary

Erskine), Blair Whitson

(Firrhill High), Anton

Valanraj (Sinclair Academy,

Winchburgh), Sophie

Walker (Penicuik HIgh),

Giselle Lee (Mary Erskine),

Amy Hunter (Craigmount),

Chloe Hu (St.George’s)

and Maggie Wang

(George Heriot’s).

Lucy Degg was a triple

champion in the senior

events while Hari Narayan

Pranavan won the senior

boy’s singles with Samuel

Corlett, also from

Boroughmuir High a

successful partner in the

senior boy’s doubles event.

SPORT 23

KIRSTY WILSON, 15, of

Edinburgh Judo Club, has

been presented with Judo

Scotland’s Young Referee

Award for 2023 by

Sam Ingram, the 2012

paralympic silver

medallist Sam, who has

been visually impaired

with Monochromatism from

birth, and is Judo Scotland’s

Club Support Officer.

Kirsty, a student at

George Heriot’s School,

joined Edinburgh Judo Club

aged three and a half. A

dozen years later she

earned her brown belt and

is working to a black belt.

Last October the club

asked the young judoka if

anyone wanted to go to a

refereeing course and Kirsty

volunteered. Participants

were shown the basic

elements of how to referee

as well as the movements

and terminology. She also

learned about the CARE

System used to analyse and

review at the mat side.

After passing the written

test in which candidates

were given various

scenarios and had to decide

how they would react, Kirsty

then gained practical

experience by attending

and refereeing tournaments

involving children just

starting out to senior

tournaments with

experienced judoka.

This took her throughout

Scotland and she qualified

as an Area Referee. Kirsty

often officiates in the

morning, competes in the

afternoon and then

officiates in the latter stages

of the tournament.

Awarded her referee’s

accolade at Judo Scotland’s

Annual Gathering at Largs it

is the first time anyone from

Edinburgh Judo has earned

this prestigious award.

RISING EDINBURGH

tennis star Hanna

Augustynska added to

her laurels by winning

the Junior International

Tennis Europe 14 and

under doubles event held

in Liverpool.

Hanna partnered Mia

Zhou from Hampshire &

Isle of Wight and together

this second seeded pair

overcame Italian

opponents in the semi-

final before overcoming

official favourites Tara

Lawal and Daisy Wooton

in a Champions tie-break

(10-5) after two sets had

been shared.

Earlier this year Hanna,

then 13, won the women’s

singles at the Edinburgh

Open, while in July we

reported on how she had

travelled to Dublin to win

her first Tennis Europe

Singles title.

Hanna is pictured left

with Mia and their trophy.

Padel-ing to success

Fantastic four dominate badminton

Young judoka wins referee award

EAST OF SCOTLAND men have set the bar

high with victory in the first UK inter-county

padel championship held at a 14 court complex

in Bristol.

Twenty teams took part and the East won

all four group games before progressing to

knock out stages where they defeated Yorkshire

in the final.

Team member Vincent Hivert, Growth and

Participation Director at the Game4Padel

organisation says:

“Selection was based on the latest rankings but

the great thing about this success is that there is

so much depth in East padel we could have

picked another five players and felt confident of

doing well.

“We were captained by Sam MacNeil (an East

county tennis player) and he is now ranked

among the top two or three players in the UK.”

The East line-up, left to right: Ross Murdoch,

David Holmes, Philip Blythe, Vincent Hivert and

Sam MacNeil.

International aid kits

WHEN REDPATH Albion coach Irfan Sheikh

headed back to Mumbai, India, for a family

visit he was able to maintain a sequence of

international aid provided by the Pilrig

Park-based football club.

Irfan took with him some used Albion kit

for needy village kids who were delighted to

accept the donation.

Club chairman Bryan Maughan said: “As

well as the boys’ team we were able to kit

out a girls team who have just played their

first ever match, winning 3-0. Given the

dustbowl pitch our UK players are so lucky

with their facilities.”

A couple of years ago Redpath Albion

showed similar generosity using Irfan

as the conduit but their gestures go back

much further.

Redpath Albion’s first donation was a

shipment to the North Australian outback in

2001 where it was appreciated by the local

Aboriginal community.

In 2006 they also helped out a football

team in Tanzania.

Edinburgh junior

Hanna triumphs at

International Tennis