SCOTLAND will send six players into action at the European Championships, which start tomorrow at La Roche-sur-Yon in France’s Vendee region.
Kirsty Gilmour, the five-times Yonex Scottish national women’s singles champion, leads the challenge as the Commonwealth silver medallist seeks her first medal at European level and Scotland’s first in singles as this 25th edition of a championship dating back to 1968 comes to France for the first time.
Gilmour is seeded to meet Spain’s double world champion and European title holder Carolina Marin in the final next Sunday in a tournament which brings to an end the year-long Olympic qualifying race.
No Scot has done better than bronze at the Europeans so Gilmour has a great incentive to live up to her seeding. But first she faces a tricky start against Turkey’s Neslihan Yigit in Wednesday evening’s second round after both players received opening byes in a 47-strong draw.
Gilmour said: “I’m looking forward to getting going next week. I haven’t played my first opponent very much, only once or twice I think, and not for a few years so I’ll definitely be ready for anything. I’ll be taking absolutely nothing for granted and always looking to put in good, solid performances.”
The Olympic qualifying campaign has left Gilmour the clear choice for the GB women’s singles spot in Rio this summer but she added: “It’s felt like a short year, it really has flown by but also, so much has happened in that time, it’s quite incredible!
“Despite not battling it out for my spot, it has still been a pretty tough year. The travelling has been intense and exhausting but great.
“I still have quite a bit of work to put in before Rio so even though it’s the end of the qualification period, I can’t relax quite yet.”
Four-times Yonex Scottish National men’s singles champion Kieran Merrilees is first into action, boosted by his silver medal at Sunday’s Victor Dutch International.
Merrilees, who lost to Spain’s Pablo Abian in Wateringen, begins his European challenge against Slovakia’s Jarolim Vicen tomorrow, with Norway’s Marius Myhre awaiting the winner on Wednesday. Two wins and Merrilees can expect a rematch with seventh seed Abian on Thursday in the last 16.
Scotland’s other hopes are in the men’s doubles, with 2015 national champions Martin Campbell and Patrick MacHugh last into action on Tuesday night with a tough contest against sixth seeds and last week’s Peru International winners Adam Cwalina and Przemyslaw Wacha of Poland.
Robert Blair and Adam Hall, the new national champions after beating Campbell and MacHugh in Perth earlier this year, take on Ukraine pair Gennadiy Natarov and Artem Pochtarev.
Blair is the only member of the Scotland squad with a European medal, having won a bronze with Anthony Clark in 2006 before going on to win a world silver together a few months later.
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