Badminton Europe’s Centre of Excellence is up and running after its opening in 2017 on September 1st. The new year brings new players to the training centre in Holbæk, Denmark, and one of them is Robert Mann, 32, of Luxembourg.
The Luxembourger started playing the sport of badminton when he was 7 years old, and at the age of 11 he joined the national team. His focus has from the very beginning been on the men’s singles event.
Mann interrupted his badminton career to go abroad and study in England and Holland for a few years.
- I started my professional badminton career unofficially in September 2015 when I started playing international tournaments regularly, and officially in April 2016 when I became a professional athlete in the Luxembourg Army, Mann says.
Keen to try new places
Today, Mann is arriving in Holbæk to join the daily training and to live in the accommodations with the rest of the 13 players who lives and trains there already.
- In the three weeks that I will be at the Centre of Excellence, I hope that I can improve upon my technique a little bit, and learn a couple of training techniques that I can implement in my routines back home.
- I am keen to try new places to train and learn from different coaches and players, and this is the reason why I am looking forward to coming to the Centre of Excellence, Mann says.
World champs and Tokyo 2020
- My short-term goals are to improve my consistency and technique. Tactically, I also hope to improve this year, and I am aiming for a qualification for the World Championships, Mann explains.
- Long-term I have set my sights on qualifying for Tokyo 2020. This is ambitious but not impossible, and with a lot more hard work and help from wherever I can get it, I am confident that I have the potential to make it a reality.
Mann has won the national championships back home in Luxembourg several times, and has proudly represented his country at the Sudirman Cup and European Championships.
Read more about the Centre of Excellence by clicking here.