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Alina Daveltova and her partner Ekaterina Bolotova may be the ones to watch (Photo: Badminton Photo)
Alina Davletova: Experience is everything
Date: 9/24/2018 8:45 AM
Published by : Alan Raftery
Following the happy news the Badminton world received for Europe’s most successful Women’s Doubles pairing, Kamila Rytter Juhl and Christina Pedersen. Who will step up to the plate and strive to reach similar heights in their absence?

We take a closer look at the new pairing coming out of Russia, Alina Davletova and Ekaterina Bolotova, who just may be ones to watch in the coming years, having already broken into the world top 30. And in particular, we speak with 20-year-old Daveltova. Firstly asking how she decided to start playing the sport. She explains

-My story began when I was 9 years old. My friends asked me to join the Badminton team in school where I was studying. I took part in one practice session and truly fell in love with Badminton.

A year later, Davletova then moved to another Badminton team in her town of Ufa. She continues to work out there to this very day. And this work has been paying off, with a tournament victory in the Estonia International and a quarter-final result in the European Championships this year. Collecting valuable ranking points which places her now at 7th in the European standings. Commenting on this success, she says

- I think that much of the success depends on a person’s dedication, self-motivation and responsibility of your own affairs. In my opinion, these things help to achieve some cherished goals. The result depends on the training session, improvement of new technical and tactical skills etc.

Everything is ahead!
With this rise up the pecking order, comes big tournaments. And there is no bigger than the World Championships, which took place in Nanjing, China this year. This was a very big experience for Davletova, and she explains why 

-It was my first World Championships. It is really cool that you can learn something new from top players. Now I have to work hard to achieve such results or higher. Everything is ahead!

- I would say that I feel more confident playing with top players than 2 years ago. Experience is everything.

To get to the Olympics I have to work hard
With this positive mind-set and momentum going forward, it will be very exciting to see how the partnership of Davletova and Bolotova develops. We asked about her key targets, she answered

-The 2nd European Games will be held in Minsk next year, I plan to play there. Moreover, I’ll take part in The European Mixed Team Championships and World Championships as well (hope so). To get to the Olympics I have to work hard, practice a lot, earn points and do believe in my dreams – a clear formula! 

And lastly, for all our readers wanting to take away some tips from a pro to improve their own game, we asked Davletova what she does to remain focused when waiting for your match? She shares that

-Everything is very simple. I warm-up well before each game, listen to energetic music and talk with coaches. These are all things that calm me down.

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