Chelsea aims for Olympics
The Olympics is her main goal but she first wants to win continental titles.
Badminton youngster Chelsea Orr’s lofty ambitions include representing the country at world sport’s grandest stage, the Olympic Games.
While the quadrennial competition, which gathers the world’s best in various disciplines, is the eventual goal, the Eastern Gauteng Badminton Association (EGBA) player dreams of winning continental championships for SA and dominating competitions in Europe before setting her sights on an Olympics cap.
“I hope to go to All Africa championships in 2026 and 2028 with the national U19 squad. The Olympics is the main goal. I also want to travel to the European competitions and compete there,” Chelsea said.
Still playing for the EGBA’s U15 team, Chelsea tested her skills against her seniors in the SA U17 badminton championships at KZN Badminton Hall in Durban in September as part of the province’s seven-player squad.
“I’m glad I got to play with people older than me because I still play for the U15s. It gave me a good idea of my competition for next year and the year after.”
Although Chelsea and her teammates fell six points short of place in the top three, she believes going forward they need to prepare better and keep things tight during matches.
“We must go into a competition well prepared, do team trainings and at the tournament, we must all give it our all because every point counts. We lost by six points. So if every one of us had won more points, we would have done well,” said Chelsea.
The experience she gained in the competition would be valuable in her career as she looks follow in the footsteps of one of her idols, Amy Ackerman.
Ackerman is a multiple African Championships women’s doubles winner and almost qualified for the Paris Olympics with partner Deidre Jordaan. She and Jordaan are currently ranked 55 in the women’s doubles in the world.
“I prefer the doubles and coach Amy is a doubles player. She was close to qualifying for the Olympics. She inspires me to do well and train hard. I hope to be like her one day and travel the world like she does.”
She thanked coaches Dillan Schaap and Michelle Butler-Emmett, who both boast incredible CVs in the sport, for their valuable contribution to her career.
Schaap is the national juniors coach while Butler-Emmett won multiple African champs mixed teams and mixed doubles golds in her illustrious career.
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