PREGNANT JO GOODE WINS ENGLISH MIXED DOUBLES TITLE

February 2, 1997 (NEW SHUTTLENWS) - British Olympic badminton player Joanne Goode (nee Wright) today pulled off a noteworthy feat when she took the mixed doubles title at the English national badminton championships at Norwich. Goode is currently four months pregnant.

Goode and partner Simon Archer defeated Chris Hunt and Donna Kellogg 15-5 and 15-2 in the championship match.

Goode will now be taking time off from the badminton circuit and will not play for England in the upcoming world championships in May. She does plan to return to competitive badminton after she gives birth.

Goode was not as triumphant in her other event, the women's doubles. She and partner Gillian Gowers were defeated in the semifinals by eventual champions Nicola Beck and Joanne Davies 15-5, 10-15 and 15-6.

Julie Bradbury, Goode's former partner in women's doubles who had retired late last year when she found out that she was pregnant, began a comeback at this English national championships. Bradbury had suffered a miscarriage and had tragically lost the baby she was carrying.

Bradbury paired with Jo Muggeridge for the women's doubles event at this tourney and the two English internationals made it through to the finals where they lost to Beck and Davies 15-9 and 15-4.

Bradbury also entered the mixed doubles event with Nick Ponting, Goode's regular partner in the past. Bradbury and Ponting got to the semifinals where they lost to Chris Hunt and Donna Kellogg 15-8 and 15-5.

In men's singles, Peter Knowles took advantage of the absence of English number 1, Darren Hall, to take the men's singles title with a 15-1 and 15-1 whipping of Stefan Pandya in the finals. Hall did not play in the tourney due to an Achilles tendon injury.

English National Badminton Championships Results

Men's Singles
Quarterfinals
R Doling beat G Hurrell 15-3, 15-3
S Pandya beat R Nock 15-12, 2-15, 18-16
P Bush beat M Edge 15-7, 15-3
P Knowles beat M Constable 15-5, 15-13

Semifinals
S Pandya beat R Doling 15-8, 4-15, 15-10
P Knowles beat P Bush 5-15, 15-4, 15-3

Final
P Knowles beat S Pandya 15-1, 15-1

Men's Doubles
Semifinals
S Archer and C Hunt beat J Robertson and N Robertson 11-15, 15-6, 15-4
N Ponting and J Quinn beat J Anderson and I Pearson 15-10, 15-9

Final
S Archer and C Hunt beat N Ponting and J Quinn 15-6, 15-4

Women's Singles
Quarterfinals
J Mann beat P Harrison 11-2, 11-0
T Hallam beat F Gallup 11-8, 11-2
J Willmott beat D le Feuvre 11-5, 11-1
J Muggeridge beat R Pantaney 11-1, 11-4

Semifinals
J Mann beat T Hallam 11-8, 12-10
J Muggeridge beat J Willmott 11-2, 11-2

Final
J Mann beat J Muggeridge 12-11, 11-4

Women's Doubles
Semifinals
J Bradbury and J Muggeridge beat E Chaffin and S Hardaker 16-18, 15-9, 15-9
N Beck and J Davies beat J Goode and G Gowers 15-5, 10-15, 15-6

Final
N Beck and J Davies beat J Bradbury and J Muggeridge 15-9, 15-4

Mixed Doubles
Semifinals
C Hunt and D Kellogg beat N Ponting and J Bradbury 15-8, 15-5
S Archer and J Goode beat J Anderson and G Gowers 15-7, 15-8

Final
S Archer and J Goode beat C Hunt and D Kellogg 15-5, 15-2

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