Imogen Bankier
Encyclopedia
Imogen Bankier is a female badminton
player from Scotland
. After starting playing the sport at the age of 9, Bankier has won the national championships at every age level from Under 17 upwards. The highlight of her professional career so far was reaching the final of the mixed doubles at the 2011 World Championships
in Wembley, London. She and her partner Chris Adcock
were defeated in the match by the Chinese team.
." Before competing at senior level in 2007 she won women's doubles and mixed doubles titles in the Under-17, Under-19, Under-21 and Under-23 age groups as well as various international open championships in doubles. Since making the step up she has taken a total of eight Scottish titles, three coming in the women's double and five in the mixed doubles.
Bankier's first major international tournament was the the 2008 European Badminton Championships
in Herning
, Denmark
where she lost out to the English pair in the quarter-finals of both doubles tournaments. She returned to compete in the mixed double at the 2010 Commonwealth Games
in Delhi
, India
where she again fell to an English pairing (who would go on to win silver) in the quarter-finals. Bankier's career highlight to date however came on 14th August 2011 when she won a silver medal in the mixed doubles event at the World Championships
. In a surprise run, she and her English partner Chris Adcock
defeated four seeded
pairs before losing out 21-15 21-7 to the world No 1 pair of Zhang Nan
and Zhao Yunlei
in the final. Despite being somewhat disappointed with her personal performance in the final, Bankier was quoted as saying that her play in the tournament as a whole would hopefully increase her chances of being selected for the 2012 Olympics in London
.
based Bankier is right handed
, 5ft 7in tall and uses equipment manufactured by Yonex
, one of her sponsors. Her other sponsor is Glenkeir Whiskey's which is ran by her father, Celtic
chairman Ian Bankier
. Imogen was one of several high profile British and International players to speak out against the Badminton World Federation's plan to force female players to wear short skirts. The BWF claimed the move was aimed at "raising badminton's profile and that of women players" whereas Bankier hit back ""I will fight to make sure this dated and simply sexist rule does not happen."
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players or two opposing pairs , who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their...
player from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. After starting playing the sport at the age of 9, Bankier has won the national championships at every age level from Under 17 upwards. The highlight of her professional career so far was reaching the final of the mixed doubles at the 2011 World Championships
2011 BWF World Championships
The 2011 BWF World Championships was the 19th tournament of the BWF World Championships, a global tournament in the sport of badminton. It was held at Wembley Arena in London, England, from August 8 to August 14, 2011....
in Wembley, London. She and her partner Chris Adcock
Chris Adcock
Chris Adcock is an internationally elite badminton player.-Career:At the 2008 Thomas Cup Chris Adcock made his debut at a major senior international tournament where he played one match in the group stage. He would continue to represent England at the 2009 Sudirman Cup where the team played sixth...
were defeated in the match by the Chinese team.
Career
Bankier started playing badminton at the age of nine in what she describes as "very competitive Bankier family games in the back gardenBack garden
A back garden is a residential garden located at the rear of a property, on the other side of the house from the public street-side entrance and front garden.-Number and size of back gardens:In Britain there are over 10 million back gardens....
." Before competing at senior level in 2007 she won women's doubles and mixed doubles titles in the Under-17, Under-19, Under-21 and Under-23 age groups as well as various international open championships in doubles. Since making the step up she has taken a total of eight Scottish titles, three coming in the women's double and five in the mixed doubles.
Bankier's first major international tournament was the the 2008 European Badminton Championships
2008 European Badminton Championships
The 2008 European Badminton Championships were the 21st tournament of the European Badminton Championships. They were held in Herning, Denmark, from April 16 to April 20, 2008, and they were organised by the Badminton Europe and the Danmarks Badminton Forbund....
in Herning
Herning
Herning Municipality is a municipality in Region Midtjylland on the Jutland peninsula in western Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 1,336 km² and a total population of 84,208...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
where she lost out to the English pair in the quarter-finals of both doubles tournaments. She returned to compete in the mixed double at the 2010 Commonwealth Games
2010 Commonwealth Games
The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games, were held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 2010. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games till date...
in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
where she again fell to an English pairing (who would go on to win silver) in the quarter-finals. Bankier's career highlight to date however came on 14th August 2011 when she won a silver medal in the mixed doubles event at the World Championships
2011 BWF World Championships
The 2011 BWF World Championships was the 19th tournament of the BWF World Championships, a global tournament in the sport of badminton. It was held at Wembley Arena in London, England, from August 8 to August 14, 2011....
. In a surprise run, she and her English partner Chris Adcock
Chris Adcock
Chris Adcock is an internationally elite badminton player.-Career:At the 2008 Thomas Cup Chris Adcock made his debut at a major senior international tournament where he played one match in the group stage. He would continue to represent England at the 2009 Sudirman Cup where the team played sixth...
defeated four seeded
Seed (sports)
A seed is a preliminary ranking that can be used in arranging a sports tournament. It is called a seed because of the analogy with plants where the seed might grow into a top rank at the end of that tournament, or might instead wither away...
pairs before losing out 21-15 21-7 to the world No 1 pair of Zhang Nan
Zhang Nan (badminton)
Zhang Nan is a men's and mixed doubles badminton player from China.- Career :Zhang played with Chai Biao in men's doubles and he paired with Zhao Yunlei in the mixed doubles.-2010:...
and Zhao Yunlei
Zhao Yunlei
Zhao Yunlei is a women's and mixed doubles badminton player from China.-Career:Zhao played with Tian Qing in the women's doubles and with Zhang Nan in the mixed doubles. Currently, she and Zhang Nan are ranked world number one...
in the final. Despite being somewhat disappointed with her personal performance in the final, Bankier was quoted as saying that her play in the tournament as a whole would hopefully increase her chances of being selected for the 2012 Olympics in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Personal Life
Milton KeynesMilton Keynes
Milton Keynes , sometimes abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is the administrative centre of the Borough of Milton Keynes...
based Bankier is right handed
Handedness
Handedness is a human attribute defined by unequal distribution of fine motor skills between the left and right hands. An individual who is more dexterous with the right hand is called right-handed and one who is more skilled with the left is said to be left-handed...
, 5ft 7in tall and uses equipment manufactured by Yonex
Yonex
is a Japanese manufacturer of sporting equipment for badminton, golf and tennis, producing racquets, clubs, shoes, shuttlecocks, and other equipment for those sports.-History:...
, one of her sponsors. Her other sponsor is Glenkeir Whiskey's which is ran by her father, Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
chairman Ian Bankier
Ian Bankier
Ian Bankier is the Chairman of Celtic football club and executive chairman of Glenkeir Whiskies Ltd. Bankier began his career as a lawyer before becoming involved with a range of whisky companies culminating in his part ownership of the Whisky Shop chain....
. Imogen was one of several high profile British and International players to speak out against the Badminton World Federation's plan to force female players to wear short skirts. The BWF claimed the move was aimed at "raising badminton's profile and that of women players" whereas Bankier hit back ""I will fight to make sure this dated and simply sexist rule does not happen."