The early rounds saw easy wins for Thomas over Gayle Lloyd (Guernsey) and Betty Blair (Devon). The quarter final saw a tough match against Emily Westwood (Herts) which Sarah was able to overcome 16-21, 21-19, 21-17.
The semi final was a comfortable 21-17 21-17 win over Gemma Whiting.
That left a tough final against the Yorkshire Elite semi finalist Jo Dix. In a tough match the RVBA’s Sarah Thomas came out victorious 24-22, 21-13.

A great Win for the sixteen year old. Her first senior Satellite Open win.

 In the ladies doubles there were 24 pairs again a strong event. This time Sarah Thomas teamed up with Sister Rachel Thomas. After a bye in the first round the girls beat McClements and Williams, then Sturgeon and Paxton. That left them a semi final against Lester and Johnson which was a hurdle too far, losing in two sets.

Badminton Wales

Badminton Wales, Sarah Thomas commented “I was really happy to win after a long day, and some tough matches. I felt a little rusty as it is the start of the season, but I am really happy with the win, especially over Jo in the final as she is a good English senior player.”

RVBA Head Coach Richard Vaughan commented “It is a great win so early on in the season for Sarah, but she now needs to be playing at a higher level and competing with those players. Ukraine next week will be a good test as Sarah has some tough but winnable games.”

Next up for the RVBA is the Ukraine Badminton Open this week in Kharkov with three entrees.

Results and updates on the Ukraine Badminton Open can be found here!

Wales Badminton RVBA

The RVBA supported by Memory Lane Cakes is an elite group of young aspiring Olympic Badminton players coached by former World No 7, European and Commonwealth Medallist Richard Vaughan from Cardiff, Wales.
The RVBA is directed by Double Olympian and former World No7 Richard Vaughan from Wales. Richard is supported by former Irish Olympic Coach Donal O Halloran, former World No32 Dr Piret Hamer, and former top British junior Liam Ingram. Top Sports Physio Leon Vaughan provides physio support.

RVBA players Tim Stranks, and Sarah Thomas won the British u17 badminton singles titles in 2009.

The RVBA is proudly supported by Memory Lane Cakes and would like to thank them for their continued support. Additionally the RVBA has established numerous partnerships with Caerphilly County Borough Council, Glamorgan University, Physio4Motion, Catalan Badminton Association and others which have enabled the RVBA players to benefit from numerous opportunities. The Cardiff 10kmis a regular RVBA (Memory Lane Cakes) fund raising event for various charities.

www.rvba.co.uk  & www.richardvaughan.net