A rising star from Letchworth has added another badminton medal to her already impressive haul as she starts the season on a positive note.

Saghana Thayaparan, already part of the Badminton England set-up, took part in the U15 gold star singles at Loughborough University and returned to Hertfordshire with a bronze medal.

The event brought together the top 16 girls in the country in the gold star category and the 13-year-old Hitchin Girls' School pupil whizzed through her group, beating a three/four seeded player Mili Patel from Kent in straight sets, 21-18 21-16, along the way.

She faced Prarthana Reddy from Avon in the semi final and played arguably her best game of the day, but with this being her return from a six-month injury lay-off, she ran out of steam and lost in a very-tight third set.

Thayaparan was still upbeat with her showing though.

She said: "Overall its a good start to the season after coming back from a injury. I hope to recover, improve and getting ready for the national championship."