OA 2024 Issue 05

PAGE 31

2022-23 SIXTH FORM LEAVERS’ DESTINATIONS

and that requires a great deal of dynamic flexibility and mobility. When I first started in the sport I took that side of things for granted. Now though I am very aware of how important it is to be supple and mobile both to prevent injury but also to improve the shot options in my game. What do you hope to achieve in the next five years? I hope to be the top men’s singles player and to be regularly representing England. Looking ahead to the major championships, the 2026 Commonwealth Games and the 2028 Olympics are both on my wish list! How did your badminton progress during your final year at the College? Was it challenging balancing your A-level studies with training and competing? From January to June, as I prepared for my A levels, badminton took a back seat in my life. Training reduced from 6–7 days a week down to 2–3. It was a challenging period because I felt my badminton wasn’t progressing as quickly as I would have liked. They do say, however, that there must a balance in all things and I understood that badminton needed to take a back seat for a while. In terms of achievements in the summer of 2023, I won two U19 national tournaments, in Milton Keynes and Wimbledon, and in July I reached the quarter-finals of the All England Junior Badminton Championships, which was an international tournament that anyone aged 18 or under worldwide could play in.

TOP COURSE CHOICES (including related courses) Engineering 32

TOP UNIVERSITY CHOICES UCL (University College London) 19

Oxford 16

Economics 26

Bath 15

History 18

Bristol 14 Exeter 14

Business/Management/ Accounting 14

Mathematics 11

LSE (London School of Economics) 10

Computer Science 10

Warwick and Imperial 9

Medicine 18

Now you have you received your A-level results what plans and goals do you have for the coming year? The plan is to take a gap year and really focus on my badminton, which is not something I have been able to do up to this point. Nationally, I would like to be challenging the best in the country at a Senior level, and internationally I hope to work my way up through the rankings as I begin to compete against the best players in Europe and ultimately the world. I currently have a place to read Geography at Queen Mary University, London from September 2024, which at the moment is looking to be a likely option. However, depending on how my badminton career shapes up during the next 12 months, it is all open to change. At the moment I am really enjoying being able to give my 100% commitment to my sport.

In line with the trend that we have seen in recent years, there were also 20 students who chose to study overseas. The most popular international universities are still in the USA, and include Yale, Duke, Notre Dame and John Hopkins, but students also took up places at the ICADE Business School in Madrid, McGill University in Canada, and the University of Warsaw. Reflecting on the increasing interest shown by Alleynians in American universities at last year’s Future of Dulwich event, Dr Joe Spence said:

“About 10% of every year group is looking to the US or Canada. There are many reasons for this but the positive one is how well we understand the application system and how to find the right college for the right candidate and source scholarships or financial aid where they are available. US universities love the Dulwich product because of the rounded nature of the student, their commitment to co-curricular and service activities, and their collegiality.”

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