With her thirst for national titles well and truly whetted, Lauren Smith admits she can’t wait to get going at next month’s English National Badminton Championships in Derby.
The double Commonwealth Games medallist will arrive at the University of Derby for the Championships from February 5-7 as a reigning champion in the women’s doubles.
Three years ago she enjoyed her first triumph alongside Gabby Adcock with the pair repeating the trick 12 months later.
And while last year saw her paired with a different partner in Heather Olver it was the same outcome as Smith and Olver finished on top.
The two will be back again on court together next month while Smith will also compete in the mixed doubles alongside Gary Fox.
And while qualifying for Rio 2016 is the main priority this year, Smith insists strutting her stuff in front of home fans at the Nationals alongside Olympians and top British stars such as Chris and Gabby Adcock is something she cherishes.
“It’s always a really great feeling to win the nationals,” she said. “It’s quite a prestigious event to be number one in the country and we train really hard here.
“I’ll hopefully be able to get that feeling again this year.
“You want to go out there and you want to prove what you’re capable of.
“You want to go out to make your mark and retain the title, it is really important for what I want to achieve throughout my career.”
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