Barton Peveril’s student Dan Wykes competing in the Badminton Junior Nationals

Barton Peveril Sixth Form College student Dan Wykes has won the Badminton England Junior Nationals U17 in Milton Keynes. 

The Badminton Junior Nationals place the country’s best players against one another, after a rigorous qualifying circuit.

Heading into the Nationals, at the beginning of 2022, former Toynbee School student Dan Wykes was ranked 7th in the country at U17 and was determined to complete the year at a higher rank. Wykes trained 14 hours a week at the Hilt at Valley Park Badminton Club, Ringwood, with coaches Mark Peckham and Nicky Cerfontyne. At the end of the competitive year, Wykes was ranked 5th nationally for his age group.

Wykes will also represent his College at the Association of College (AoC) national finals in Nottingham taking place in April 2023. 

The AoC Sport National Championships celebrate competitive sports, providing recognition and an opportunity for students to compete. They also remain one of the largest annual student sporting events in the UK.

Dan Wykes response: 

“I felt that I was in good shape going into the tournament and it was fantastic that all my hard work paid off. But now it’s back to training and planning the next steps of my journey.”

“My goals include representing England at U19 and hopefully one day playing in the Commonwealth and Olympic games.”

Luke Hampton, Director of Sport at Barton Peveril writes:

“I am delighted for Dan. It is a fantastic achievement to be crowned national champion, and it shows what you can achieve with hard work, dedication and sporting talent all combined.”