Niks Podosinoviks started to play badminton when he was 10 years old. Initially he played a lot of basketball but chose badminton in the end because of the individuality of the sport. A decision he can truly say was the right one.

The facilities of RBS (Riga Badminton Club) has formed the framework for Podosinoviks throughout his career so far, with Arnis Šefers as his coach. Practicing and hard work is something that Podosinoviks, 19, enjoys: “I am never afraid to do an intensive and physically very hard training because I know if you train harder in practice, it will be easier to play during match.”

This work ethics and dedication is going to be of good use soon when he moves to Holbaek to follow his dream:

“I am very happy and proud to be starting in Holbaek from September. I have been interested in this project since the first news about it last year, and after the first selection camp I understood that I really wanted to be there. Now, I can say that this dream came true and I can't wait to go to Denmark and start working seriously towards my goal.”

Podosinoviks explains that it has been very difficult for him to grow as a player because of limited sparring. So, moving to Denmark is the only way he sees that he can progress:

“I have achieved everything that is possible in Latvia. If I want to progress then I must train and practice with stronger guys. For me, the COE project is a unique opportunity to train at the highest level and together with very welcoming and professional players and coaches.”

For Podosinoviks, there is no doubt that the COE is going to help him to become a much better player. He also participated in the second selection camp in Holbaek and was able to see the facilities and training circumstances with his own eyes, and he has great hopes for the future:

“I am sure that living and training in Holbaek is going to turn my career to the right way. I am very thankful for this great opportunity to be a part of COE.”

Stay tuned for the final player announcements coming up that will reveal who joins Podosinoviks and the 10 other players in Holbaek.

Do you remember the first player we announced? If not, click here to see all the announcements about the COE.

Learn more about the high-performance training centre by visiting the its’ subpage.