badminton

Kirsty Gilmour's run to the last 16 of the women's singles at the European Championships in Karlskrona, Sweden, was brought to a halt by Yao Jie, the No.5 seed from Netherlands and a former winner who triumphed 21-12, 21-8, writes Kathy May. The 18-year-old from Bothwell, Lanarkshire, had earlier scored a 21-12, 21-15 win over Switzerland's Nicole Schaller in just 26 minutes. England's Elizabeth Cann, who is chasing Scotland's Susan Egelstaff for Olympic selection, advanced to the third round with a 21-14, 21-18 win over Slovenia's Maja Tvrdy before being beaten by the top seed, Tine Baun of Denmark.

Another Scottish Olympics hopeful, Glasgow's Imogen Bankier, advanced to the quarter-finals of the mixed doubles with her English partner Chris Adcock. The duo, seeded fourth, meet the English pair Nathan Robertson and Gabby White, the No.8 seeds and their main rivals for the Olympic Games berth in London, in the quarter-finals today.

ice hockey

GREAT BRITAIN 4

UKRAINE 3

Great Britain's overtime victory broke their World Championship Division 1 Group A duck in Slovenia yesterday after defeats by the hosts and Austria in their first two matches, writes Nigel Duncan. The side, coached by Edinburgh-based Tony Hand, are fourth in the six-strong table on two points from three matches ahead of ties against Japan today and Hungary on Saturday.

Robert Dowd, of Belfast Giants, scored a treble, including the winner, and Matthew Myers, of Nottingham Panthers, notched the other, with the Glaswegian Colin Shields providing an assist. Hand, who formerly played for Ayr Scottish Eagles and Dundee CCS Stars, said: "I am so proud of the way the guys battled. We played well but were up against it the first period and came back superbly. The team effort, and the way we stuck to the plan, was brilliant. I could not have asked for anything more. I still think we can win a medal here."

hockey

WESTERN WILDCATS 5

GLYNHILL KELBURNE 3

Four goals from arch-predator Scott McCartney earned Wildcats victory over the champions in a catch-up Subway national league fixture at Auchenhowie and ensures that they will finish third, behind Grange who have still an outstanding game against AMN Hillhead.

With the league and cup trophies already in the Whitehaugh clubhouse, Kelburne could be forgiven for taking their foot off the pedal but would still have smarted at suffering only their second loss of the season, even if they remain nine points ahead of Grange.

Kelburne rested several regulars and gave debuts to youngsters Ed Greaves, Andrew Duff, Jack McAllister and goalkeeper Fergus Burrows in the second half. Wildcats scored early through Douglas Simpson and led 2-1 at half-time as McCartney opened his account in 24 minutes with a fierce angled shot from a Steven Percy pass. Ross McIntyre pulled one back after Jonny Christie had set up the chance.

Willie Marshall scored at a penalty corner after a slip pass from Mark Ralph to draw Kelburne level early in the second half, but Simpson set up the unmarked McCartney to restore Wildcats' lead and he swiftly made it 4-2 with a drag flick into the roof of the net from a set piece. Mark Ralph scored from open play for Kelburne before McCartney notched his fourth from another penalty corner.

n Scotland's under-21 men have a great chance of qualifying for the 2013 Junior World Cup as they need only finish in the top six at the European Junior Nations Championships in Den Bosch this summer to secure an automatic place. The International Hockey Federation yesterday allocated six places to Europe, reflecting the relative strength of the sport in this continent. The Scots youngsters begin their campaign in Den Bosch with pool games against Germany, Belgium and Spain.

The women have only an outside chance of playing in the Junior World Cup after being relegated from Europe`s top flight two years ago. An additional reserve place has gone to Europe, though, and the Scots would have to win the Championship II tournament in Russia to have a chance.

speedway

Lee Complin, Berwick Bandits inspirational captain, has confirmed that he will ride at Sheffield Tigers, one of his old clubs, tonight (7.45) despite having two dislocated fingers, cracked ribs and a sore back, writes Nigel Duncan. The 27-year-old racer, who is based in Skipton, has also had to re-build his bike after a high-speed shunt. He crashed heavily into the safety fence at Shielfield Park in Saturday's 52-38 home win over Scunthorpe Scorpion but rode a spare bike to contest three more races and claimed seven points. Fifth-placed Berwick have six points from four League Cup outings while Sheffield, who are sixth, have five points from three. The pair meet in the return at Berwick on Saturday.