Jayce
Prospective father Sean Vendy is set to embark on his second Olympic journey with a fresh perspective, teaming up with long-time doubles partner Ben Lane in their quest for glory.
Vendy, 28, discovered in March that his partner Shannon was expecting their first child.
They broke the news to Lane on the day they flew to the Swiss Open, a tournament they would go on to win, securing their biggest-ever title.
That victory reinforced their belief that they could compete with the world’s best in Paris, but Vendy will be crossing the Channel knowing that the result is not the most important thing.
“Being a father is always at the back of my mind,” said Vendy.
“When training gets really tough, you think ‘I haven’t got much left in me’, and you have to remind yourself that you’re not just doing it for yourself, you’re doing it for someone else.
“It definitely changes your mindset and perspective. It’s not everything anymore, I’ve got other things to do, and it’s one of the biggest things you can do in your life.”
Lane is already prepared to be the honorary uncle to Vendy’s new arrival in November, but only if the pair can take the next step on a court journey that began when they teamed up aged 12.
He said: “I don’t know what it’s like to have kids, but when you do sport sometimes you can be quite selfish and you’re always trying to do better for yourself or your partner.
“When something like this happens, it reminds you that there are bigger things than badminton.”
Team GB have won three Olympic badminton medals since the sport made its debut at the Barcelona Games in 1992, and the pair need look no further for inspiration than their coach Nathan Robertson, who won one of those medals with Gail Emms at the Athens Games.
“We got in touch with Nathan about 10 years ago when we were 18 or 19 and his big project was to get us to Paris,” said Lane.
“He’s been to multiple multi-sports Games, he’s won world championships and Olympic silver medals, so being able to tap into that knowledge is a massive positive.
“He was an unbelievable player and he helps us both on and off the court, he’s more than just a coach.”
Vendy added: “His Olympic medal was one of the factors that inspired me to play.
“I was just a badminton fan watching that final on TV but that match made me really fall in love with badminton. It inspired me to take it seriously.”
He has done just that, and now heads to the competition brimming with confidence, and he and Lane can cause trouble for anyone in the draw.
On Saturday morning they face Tokyo Olympic bronze medallists Sze Fei and Su Wei Yi, and the following day they take on world number ones Liang Wei-Keng and Wang Chang.
“I think we both have a lot of confidence and the Swiss Open gave us even more,” said Vendy.
“We always have a fearless attitude, we think we can beat anyone. That can sometimes help us get over the line.
“I feel we’ve both improved a lot as players and individuals since the Tokyo Olympics, but it felt like we shouldn’t have been improving there – there were no fans and no friends and family.
“This time we’re hoping to have a home Olympics feeling, we can’t wait.”
Joining Vendy and Lane in the Team GB squad is Kirsty Gilmour, who is making her third Olympic appearance.
Gilmour is drawn in women’s singles group N alongside He Bingjiao and Azerbaijan’s Ksenia Polikarpova.
“For the first Olympics (Rio), you want to give it your all,” she said.
“Tokyo was a bit strange, so for this one I’m just trying to be really confident in all my preparation, so I can go into the competition with a free and relatively relaxed mind.
“In big tournaments, people can get caught up in what might or might not happen. You could have the best week of your life, so it’s important to allow for that possibility.”
