Our Pan Am Coaches are also protagonists of badminton in our region. Behind each successful athlete there is a great coach who worked hard to help athletes fulfill their dreams.

In Barbados, Shakeira Waithe, former badminton player, is a National Coach and Training and Development Co-ordinator, and has had the opportunity to lead the team at 2012 Youth Commonwealth Games and the 2015 Pan Am Games.

“I was introduced to badminton at the age of seven by Caroline Vaughn. I made the Junior National Team four years later where I was given the opportunity to represent Barbados at regional and international tournaments. This representation continued throughout my junior career and into my senior career where I was honoured to be a member of the 2006 Commonwealth Games Team in Melbourne, Australia.”

Since Shakeira became a coach she set clear goals to continue developing badminton in her country, both in the high performance and in the training of new athletes.

“My objetives with badminton are to provide opportunities for players of all levels to further develop and improve their skills, give each player the opportunity to have the best badminton experience, increase the number of players locally in badminton and provide potential badminton players with an inspirational pathway for a professional badminton career.”

Waithe considers that being appointed the Head Coach of the Junior National Badminton Team at the age of 27 was a major achievement, and a big step in her coaching career but not everything was easy at that time. She was questioned for being a woman, because of her age and because of the experience she could have.

“I was faced with comments from people within the sport wondering if at my age, as a female and with little coaching experience, if I would have been successful as the Head Coach. I didn’t let the comments and concerns of others discourage me. Instead, I used them to motivate me to step up to the challenge. Once I believed in myself, and was confident in my knowledge and ability, I knew that I despite whatever challenges came with the role, I would have been able to overcome them.”

With difficulties and achievements, Shakeira managed to make a successful career in badminton and, surely, will continue to exceed her own goals. The experiences she has lived allow her to share with us the following advice:

“Don’t let anyone or anything stand in the way of your passion and goals. Always believe in yourself, your ability and trust the process.”