“I felt very isolated and quite lonely,” Lauren Smith says with a measured but stark openness as she describes the challenging period that has accompanied her build-up to what ought to be a thrilling time.
Smith, one of Cumbria’s leading sporting lights, is preparing for her second Olympic Games with Team GB, in the badminton women’s doubles and mixed doubles. The 29-year-old from Longtown is known as a strong-minded and focused competitor. The recent past, though, has tested her fortitude.
This came to light when Smith, last week, uploaded an Instagram post where she painted a picture of a difficult environment at Badminton England. “In the last few weeks,” she wrote, “I have dreaded having to go in the hall with some coaches I no longer believe want the best for me as a player and who I know to be biased.”
Smith also said players “wellbeing and happiness” was not valued, and claimed the official handling of certain situations had been “appalling”, referring to the controversial men’s doubles omission of Marcus Ellis, her on and off-court partner.
It was unusual to see Smith lay her frustrations out so publicly, on the day her Team GB selection was confirmed (she will partner Chloe Birch in the women’s doubles, and Ellis in the mixed) – and she admits it was not something that came entirely naturally. “It’s been a difficult week in some ways,” she says, “but it had already been a rocky few weeks.
“After putting the post up, some of the responses that I received, whether from ex-players, my team-mates or people in other sports, were people saying, ‘I feel the same, thank you for speaking out’. That was a real validation that I’ve done the right thing.”
Smith says she considered her words very carefully, and is mindful not to name individual names when talking further about the difficulties she describes. She is also clear that she wants her intervention to be part of constructive change for the benefit of all players at the sport’s Milton Keynes HQ, not least the younger generation of elite performers.
The circumstances, she says, began as many as five years ago. “Ultimately, this maybe began when we lost our funding from UK Sport and we had to lose a lot of the support staff. We had in place, before, a psychologist, a lifestyle advisor, and we had a bit more of a hierarchy: accountability for everybody in the system, someone to answer to.
“Since then – I don’t think this is anyone’s particular fault, but we’ve had to put our money into different places. We have a lot of coaches, but don’t have a lot of support staff. Gradually I’ve seen players lose their voice, because they’ve voiced a concern with a coach about somebody and it’s not been handled in the way I believe it should be.”
Smith says she also saw a communication problem close-up when the higher-ranked men’s pairing of Ellis and Chris Langridge were surprisingly overlooked for Olympic selection in favour of the younger Ben Lane and Sean Vendy.
“Marcus is still trying to train and get ready for Tokyo [in the mixed doubles], and he’s still uncomfortable in the environment,” Smith says. “It’s very difficult for him to go in and face people who made that earth-shattering decision, when not one of the staff have asked, ‘How are you doing, do you need anything?’ Chris Langridge, who has had an amazing career, has basically been told the thing you were working towards in your career – you’re not having it. And nobody was in touch with him.
“This is a hugely emotional and difficult time for an athlete, and the people you thought were on your side and wanted the best for you don’t even bother to pick up the phone, or have a chat..? There’s just a lack of care, in my opinion, about the players as humans.”
Smith says she has experienced this herself before, and there have been times when she herself has not looked forward to training. “I’m somebody that absolutely loves playing badminton. I love training as much as I love competing. I’ve always woken up, got out of bed and thought, ‘I’m so lucky to have this job’. For me to go in there and suddenly feel differently is not something I ever expected to feel.
“I was very, very lucky that my team-mates were very supportive. They would come over and see how things were. To feel like you’re going into an environment with people you maybe don’t trust any more, because of the way you’ve seen certain things happen...it was difficult.”
There have been specific moments, Smith says, which led her to these feelings. “I had one conversation with a coach, where I referred to the fact we had had a particular conversation before – and there was utter denial from the other side. That kind of confirmed they were putting themselves first, because they were very much protecting themselves and the other coaches.
“There have been times when I’ve had meetings with a coach, with my partner, when we’ve raised a few problems, and it felt like it’s been brushed under the carpet a little bit. I feel there’s a few relationships where, if you speak to that person about something or someone, they’re just going to tell the other people and it’s not going to go anywhere. I just think there’s no accountability there, no one to answer to.”
GB Badminton, in the wake of online criticism including that made by Smith on Instagram, issued a statement (which can be read here or below this article) defending its “robust” Olympic selection process and appeals procedure. It said it takes athletes’ welfare “extremely seriously”, and added that comments questioning its coaches’ integrity cannot be “condoned”. It also pledged to “engage fully” with players regarding any “challenges” they perceive in the environment. GB Badminton, which comprises Badminton England, Badminton Scotland, Ulster branch Badminton and Badminton Wales when competing as Great Britain at Olympic and Paralympic Games, European Game and Youth Olympic Games, have also asked UK Sport to conduct a “culture health check” after the Olympics.
Smith says the finer detail of the issues she has raised will be aired behind closed doors rather than publicly. But she is prepared to be open about how it tested her. “I’m quite thick-skinned, I’m pretty tough,” she says. “I went in and trained every day, because I want to put my best foot forward in Tokyo. But if I was 21, or just coming into badminton and this is how I was made to feel, I don’t know if I would have been able to carry on for another nine or 10 years.
“It was really difficult, very tiring. I live with Marcus, and seeing everything unfold with what was going on with his appeal, the sort of conversations he was having…it was difficult to separate. I found it hard, I can’t lie. I leaned on family and friends and I’m very lucky that I’ve got a great personal support network – they’re there to lend an ear when I need it.”
Smith says that, since her Instagram post, she has been contacted by the national badminton hierarchy with a view to having the in-depth discussions she feels are essential. She says it is right that these will take place later in the year, given the importance of focused preparation between now and the start of the Olympics this month.
“Going public has, I think, made them pay much more attention than they ever have previously,” she says. “I’ve had contact with people at the top of the chain now who are looking at solutions. As well as that, there is also a bit of public expectation that they are going to do better.
“When I’ve said before [internally] that I was feeling lonely, isolated and wasn’t helped with managing a very difficult situation – the answer was, ‘We gave this company your contact and they didn’t get in touch’, or ‘We’ve employed this person but haven’t had the chance to sit down with them yet’.
“That’s just excuses. Sitting down and talking about things is one thing, but taking action to make change will inevitably have to happen now.”
Smith says that, in the short-term, there are a “couple” of coaching relationships that are “not workable” adding that the same goes for Ellis. “We are trying to currently work out how that’s going to be,” she says. “Hopefully they’re going to respect our feelings on the matter. We’re fortunate there are coaches there that we still have great working relationships with.”
Smith says she did not discuss her Instagram post with any player other than Ellis before publication, but is heartened by how team-mates have responded. “That’s driven me on even more to ensure things do change. It’s not just for me, it’s for younger players. Some of them are only 19-20. They’re feeling the same sort of things. This absolutely isn’t just for me personally.
“One thing I do want to do is, before I have conversations with Badminton England, is to have conversations with the players, to ask what they think could be better, what would make them feel heard or valued.
“If you have a question and feel you can get an answer to it, or have a concern that can get looked into, or have someone you can go to that you trust, you’re going to feel more comfortable. Otherwise you’re sat there quietly wondering, ‘Am I allowed to ask this?’ You end up not saying anything and not getting any answers.
“That’s when you get rumours, people feeling quite alienated. It creates quite a toxic environment. That could intimidate a lot of players. It’s definitely something we’re going to address.”
What gives Smith the resolve to use her voice like this? “That’s a good question. Before this week I would have classed myself as one of the people who wouldn’t speak up so much. But I think the attitude of not taking any rubbish has come from my upbringing. I’m not afraid to be disagreed with.
“I did have concerns about the repercussions of this. At the end of the day, some of it may have come from my determination to continue on in my sport – I want to be able to have a great Olympics, and then push on to the next Olympics – in what I believe needs to be a healthier environment. And some of it comes from a passion for the sport in our country. I’ve got a brother who’s 12 years old and he plays. If he ever plays full-time I’d want him to go into an environment where he feels valued and that he’s got a voice.”
Smith says it is important that many of these issues are now set aside until after Tokyo. She adds that the British Athletes’ Commission have been supportive. “It’s not going to be that easy to park, but I still count myself as a very professional athlete in terms of putting personal issues to one side when I need to step on court without all the baggage.”
The approach of Tokyo is enough reason to look firmly forward. Smith’s eagerness for her second Games after Rio 2016 is plain. “I can’t wait,” she smiles. “As soon as I started pursuing badminton, the Olympics has been a huge dream. I’m really excited to have an opportunity to go a second time and try and make people proud.”
She laughs when she remembers certain Olympics-watching rituals at home. “For Beijing [2008], my mam and I basically moved onto Asian time zones – we were nocturnal for two weeks,” she says. “That one sticks in my mind, although maybe not for the healthiest reasons…”
The Covid pandemic means Smith’s family will not be able to watch in Japan, but she will feel their backing. “I would not be here if it hadn’t been for all the support they have given me, all the values they’ve instilled,” she says. “I always want to say thank-you for everything they did, all the sacrifice, all the motorway journeys.”
Smith’s home county will also follow her progress in Tokyo. “I’m such a proud Cumbrian,” she says. “I think a lot of the gutsy determination in me is from being bred in Cumbria. And we’ve got an amazing group of athletes going from Cumbria to Tokyo, which is great to see.
“The messages and support I get from home have been invaluable. A lot of the things I was given by Cumbrian support, whether it be my friends at the badminton club, people who would give me lifts to courts, lifts to places...it’s all played a part in getting me here today. I’m very lucky that it’s such a great community and a really supporting county to come from.”
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Statement from GB Badminton:
Following the announcement of the selection of the GB Badminton Team for the Tokyo Olympic Games on 28 June, comments emerged on social media from a small number of GB players regarding the GB performance environment.
While the announcement of athletes in many sports can divide opinion, the selection of the GB Olympic Badminton Team followed a robust process that was undertaken in accordance with the approved Tokyo 2020 Olympics Selection Policy. This process also included an independent Appeals Procedure where the outcome of the selection was ultimately determined through arbitration facilitated by Sport Resolutions.
The comments made included reference to athlete welfare, something that we take extremely seriously; the wellbeing of our players remains of paramount importance to our organisation and to the success of the programme. GB Badminton has acknowledged the comments made and continues to seek to have a constructive and productive dialogue with the players at this time while putting additional measures in place to help manage the situation, including engaging the British Athlete Commission to provide independent support to the players.
While the wellbeing of our players is critically important, the wellbeing of ‘the team behind the team’ is no less important. The challenge to the professionalism and integrity of our programme management, coaches, and support team, is something that we cannot condone and the personal and abusive attacks on social media platforms targeting our staff are completely unacceptable.
The situation we are in now is very disappointing and is a significant distraction to everyone involved with the GB badminton team – players, coaches, and support team – and all parties recognise that the sole focus, right now, must be on preparing to arrive in Tokyo in the best physical and mental condition, ready to make Great Britain proud, as we did in Rio 2016.
GB Badminton has committed to engage fully with all players on their return from Tokyo to listen, understand and tackle, head on, any challenges that might exist either within an individual player programme or the wider programme itself. Furthermore, GB Badminton has already requested that UK Sport initiate a culture health check to take place as soon as possible after the Games.
We have always been, and will continue to be, totally committed to providing the optimum performance environment that has seen the GB Badminton Olympic Programme achieve multi medal performances at World, European and Commonwealth level and one that has ensured that GB Badminton is represented in every event in Tokyo, including four Olympic debutants.
GB Badminton, the players, coaches, and support staff have worked tirelessly to enable the reinstatement of the GB Badminton Olympic programme and we are now just a matter of a few weeks away from the Games. For now, our intention is to avoid any further disruption and focus on final preparations.
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