Local girls make national badminton squads

IT WAS a surprise to both these St Matthews girls to find they had made the national badminton squad in their respective age groups.
Shelley Martin, 17, and Mary Smith, 14, recently got the news that they have been selected to play badminton for New Zealand.
Martin had her under19 trials over the previous two weekends and was told of her inclusion after the last trial.
"I was quite surprised because I wasn't in the New Zealand development squad," she said.
She has been playing badminton since she was five and is going to see where it takes her.
"It's mostly about having fun at the moment," she said.
The goal for both girls is to do well at the national championships which are in July for the under 15s and November for the under 19s.
Both Martin and Smith board at St Matthews Collegiate School. Martin is in year13 and is from Wellington, while Smith is in year 10 and is from Kapiti.
Badminton has seen in a resurgence in popularity in New Zealand lately with the success of Sara Runesten Petersen and Dan Shirley who teamed up to win a bronze medal in the 2005 world champs and are a strong prospect at the Commonwealth Games this year.
Badminton believed to be is the fastest racquet game in the world.