Perry Looks To Build On Recent Successes
23rd September
The Newsletter
By Nigel Ringland
Madeline Perry begins her World Open squash challenge in Amsterdam today looking to build on her recent success in when she reached the final of the British Open, a tournament on a similar level to the one she’s competing in this week.
While she didn’t quite make it to the winner’s circle, beaten by Rachel Grinham, she defeated the world number one Nicol David (Malaysia) and fourth seed Alison Watters from England.
“It was certainly the biggest tournament week of my career because I’d never beaten Nicol before and to make it to the final of such a prestigious tournament, on par with the world championships and with such a history was a terrific achievement. It was a real confidence booster and I’m playing well so hopefully I can produce some big results this week,” she explained.
Madeline is one of the provinces world-class sportswomen and was in the world’s top six before suffering a horrific ordeal in Milan a couple of years ago when she was mugged.
The head injury could have been but thankfully wasn’t life threatening but she had to take time away from the sport.
Her comeback was helped by the support she received from the Sports Institute of Northern Ireland.
“Initially I had to take six weeks away from everything but after that I was gradually coming back but it took me the guts of a year to get back to the level I was at before. SINI helped me enormously with the rehabilitation and as a support network to help me get back to playing well again and organising everything to suit my needs helped me so much,” admitted Madeline.
Now Madeline is back in the world’s top ten and playing some of the best squash of her life and next year she hopes to take part in what would be her fourth Commonwealth Games in Delhi.
“Since the last Games in Melbourne when I came pretty close to winning a medal this has been a big goal. I’d love to win a medal for Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games and next year will be my last so I want it even more than ever.”
Madeline Perry is originally from Banbridge, currently lives in England, trains a lot in Milan and travels around the world to tournaments. The 32 year-old is one of the longest serving athletes in the Sports Institute of Northern Ireland and she credits them with her success in maintaining a place in the world’s top ten and being in a position to challenge for the biggest prizes the sport has to offer.
“I’d never had that kind of support before, they helped me with my strength and conditioning, to build myself up as an athlete. They travel to tournaments and offer me physio and support and make me feel like a true professional athlete. I definitely wouldn’t have got to where I am without their help, you can’t get to that level on your own, you need that kind of support team.”
High Performance Manager at the Sports Institute is Jo Hopkins and she’s been with Madeline for the last five years.
“Athletes at this level needs a support team around them at world events and it is crucial that Madeline has this support. We have prioritised traveling to events such as the British Open and World Championships to ensure that Madeline has the practical and emotional support around her to allow her to achieve her goals. The SINI staff that travel with Madeline (High Performance Manager and Physiotherapist) are now known on the World circuit as part of “Team Perry”.
Our best way to help is not only hands on practical support at events but by being a consistent professional support in her corner that she can rely on no matter where she is or what the circumstances,” explains Hopkins.
For Madeline, this support is now the equal of some of the bigger countries such as England and Malaysia.
“Someone like the world number one Nicol David has a physio with her at every event she plays and the English team have so many coaches and video analysts and so too have the French. From a little country like Northern Ireland it’s a pretty big showing to have that sort of support,” explains Madeline.
The relationship between Madeline and SINI has improved over the years with both parties learning from each other.
“To maintain a position in the world top ten is no mean feat, Madeline is among a very select group of Irish athletes to achieve this standing over a number of years.
We have learnt through working with Madeline that at this top level each athlete requires an individualised support structure around them. Each athlete has unique circumstances and needs and it is essential that we tailor our support to the demands of each athlete. There is no one size fits all approach at this level of sport.
Over the past five years we have worked hard to achieve the “best fit” for Madeline creating the optimal environment for her to produce the best at her events. Even at this world class level doing the simple things well and paying attention to detail is the key to success,” says Hopkins.
Madeline Perry
Age: 32
Sport: Squash
Madeline is a full time Squash player and is originally from Banbridge.
Madeline reached a career high in 2006 when she was ranked 6th in the world. Following on from an unfortunate head injury in 2007 she dropped out of international competition. Following her return Madeline has managed to climb the ranking and is currently ranked 8th.
In 2009 Madeline reached the Semi Final of the World Championships and is working towards the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
With thanks to Richard Mulligan, Sports Editor of The Newsletter
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