December 9, 2022
Badminton England is pleased to announce the three players who will act as clean sport ambassadors as part of ongoing anti-doping efforts in partnership with UKAD.
Sam Jones, Jack Shephard and Lauren Smith have signed up to the Badminton England and UKAD campaign which will see sportspeople across a wide range of disciplines demonstrate their commitment to clean sport and encourage others to tackle doping within sport.
All three have positioned themselves as role models within badminton and will promote UKAD’s clean sport philosophy, using their platform to share their experiences and knowledge of clean sport.
Smith, who has competed at two Olympic Games and is a winner of seven Commonwealth Games medals, is committed to promoting clean sport after over a decade competing in elite-level events.
She said: “Over my many years of playing I’ve developed a wealth of knowledge around clean sport and anti-doping, and now as Badminton England’s clean sport ambassador, I hope to share that knowledge within the wider badminton community.
Shephard, a Paralympian and three-time world champion, is looking forward to taking on his role as an ambassador.
He added: “I’m one of the new Badminton England UKAD Clean Sport Ambassadors. I’m looking forward to taking on this role because I believe our sport should be clean, fair and honest.”
Jones, who recently ended his junior career with two titles at the U19 National Championships and will now be moving into senior competition, is another who has signed up to the scheme.
He said: “I’m excited to share my knowledge of anti-doping and advocate for clean sport to the badminton community.”
Smith, Shephard and Jones will produce a series of social media posts across the year promoting the work Badminton England and UKAD are doing in relation to clean sport and anti-doping, and will work alongside Badminton England to further enhance their role as an ambassador.
All three will attend workshops to talk about their experiences with anti-doping and testing and undergo UKAD training relevant to the role, which includes online courses, while the trio will also help and support other players who may have questions around clean sport and anti-doping.
