Badminton Ireland have confirmed that the 20 year old professional had reached the Beijing qualifying standard thanks to his world ranking of 43 and that they would be recommending him to the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) for inclusion in the Irish team in the coming days.
Pat Hickey, President of the Olympic Council commented on Scott’s achievement: “He has climbed more than 50 places since we in the OCI awarded him a special Olympic Solidarity scholarship 18 months ago which enabled him to become a full-time player and to train at the International Badminton Academy. Our financial support has proved crucial in Scott’s case and we look forward to helping to supporting many more potential Olympic athletes in the future”.
Scott is now based in Denmark where he plays in the Danish badminton Premier League as a professional with the Gentofte team, the most pre-eminent league in Europe. He took up badminton at age 6 and was educated at South Dublin’s Wesley College.
Talking to the Irish Times, Scott told sports journalist Mary Hannigan “It has been a hard road for me and a road that sometimes was difficult, but all the time was worth the struggle”
