A University of the West of Scotland (UWS) graduate has picked up gold at the European Badminton Championships in Huelva, Spain, and become the first British woman to win a singles title in 40 years.
Kirsty Gilmour, who graduated from UWS in 2015, beat Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt of Denmark in the final to win gold after previously placing second in the 2016, 2017, 2022, 2024 and 2025 finals.
In a story of resilience and determination, Kirsty overcame injury to win a European Championship gold medal for the first time against the opponent who beat her in the final last year.
“Being able to call myself European Champion after so many near misses feels better than I could’ve ever dreamed. It’s certainly made for a great story,” commented Kirsty on social media.
Widely regarded one of the best badminton singles players that Britain has ever produced, Kirsty has taken part in three Olympics and two European Games, winning silver at Minsk 2019 and bronze at Krakow 2023.
At Glasgow 2014, while studying at UWS, she became the first Scottish woman to reach a Commonwealth Games Badminton Singles final, winning silver.
Following graduation in 2015 with a BA in Creative Industries Practice, Kirsty returned to the podium at the Gold Coast 2018 with a second successive Singles medal, this time a bronze.