Kelly Ann Aston (, born 22 May 1975) is a Welsh

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...

player. She has represented Wales and Great Britain in regional and international competitions, including the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competit ...

and the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

, winning gold in the

1998 Commonwealth Games The 1998 Commonwealth Games ( Malay: ), officially known as the XVI Commonwealth Games (Malay: ), were a multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 1998 games were the first held in Asia and the last Commonwealth Games of the 20th cen ...

, and beat world number one Ye Zhaoying of China in the

1999 IBF World Championships The 1999 IBF World Championships ( World Badminton Championships) were held in Copenhagen, Denmark, between 10 May and 23 May 1999. During men's single semi final match between Fung Permadi and Peter Gade, a historical decision was made by Perm ...

Career

Aston began playing badminton at age nine. Her brother, Ross, was initially trying for the Welsh national team, and she only made the team as a result of accompanying him to the trials. In 1999, Aston was voted Welsh Woman of the Year; she was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(MBE) in the

2002 Birthday Honours Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published in sup ...

for "services to the community, especially through Sport, in South Wales." Aston won 13 consecutive Women's Singles titles at the Welsh National Badminton Championships between 1992 and 2004, as well as six Women's Doubles and 4 Mixed Doubles titles. In 1998, she received a gold medal representing Wales at the

, won silver at the

1998 European Badminton Championships The 16th European Badminton Championships were held in Sofia, Bulgaria, between 18 and 25 April 1998, and hosted by the European Badminton Union and the Bulgarian Badminton Federation. Venue The competition was held at the Winter Sports Palace ...

, and bronze at the

2000 European Badminton Championships The 17th European Badminton Championships were held in Glasgow, Scotland, between 25 and 29 April 2000, and hosted by the European Badminton Union and the Scottish Badminton Union. Venue This tournament was held at the Kelvin Hall Internationa ...

. She also represented Great Britain at the

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

and

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

Olympic Games.

Personal life

Aston was born in

Pontypridd Pontypridd ( , ), Colloquialism, colloquially referred to as ''Ponty'', is a town and a Community (Wales), community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales, approximately 10 miles north west of Cardiff city centre. Geography Pontypridd comprises the ...

and attended Bryn Celynnog Comprehensive School. She married her husband, Dylan Aston, in 2002, and has two children, Ethan and Ella. is a teacher at the GEMS Wellington Academy-Al Khail in

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

. She has also been heavily involved in charity work, particularly relating to Down Syndrome, and was the patron of the Down's Syndrome Association of Wales.

Achievements

Commonwealth Games

''Women’s singles''

European Championships

''Women's singles''

IBF World Grand Prix

The World Badminton Grand Prix has been sanctioned by the International Badminton Federation since 1983. ''Women's singles'' ''Women's doubles''

IBF International

''Women's singles'' ''Women's doubles'' ''Mixed doubles''

References

External links

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Kelly Welsh female badminton players 1975 births Living people Badminton players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Badminton players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Badminton players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Wales Badminton players at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Badminton players at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Olympic badminton players for Great Britain Sportspeople from Pontypridd Members of the Order of the British Empire Commonwealth Games gold medallists in badminton Badminton players at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1998 Commonwealth Games