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Interview with Kirsty Richards |
| Winning a national singles title is a dream come true for any bowler, but for Kirsty Richards the achievement was even more impressive considering just the week before lifting the trophy, she had seriously considered giving up bowls. Back in 2017, the Warwickshire player had to pull on every ounce of mental strength she possessed after struggling all season with the 'yips'- a term used to describe involuntary twitches, staggers and jerks during delivery. "I don't think I will ever fully know why it came about, I think different people are given different things throughout their lives to test them, and this was clearly one of mine,” she said. “I used to have selective mutism when I was younger (a severe anxiety disorder where a person is unable to speak in certain social situations) and struggled with it for quite a few years, so can only think it was potentially a combination of the after-effects of that and the pressure I started to put on myself to get the perfect bowl. “When it is at its worse it is horrific, and as dramatic as it sounds the only way I can describe it is like feeling you are going to have a heart attack every time you go to bowl.  “For those who have never experienced the yips, it can be
related to a panic attack. But imagine this panic attack every time
you go to bowl, and so when you can't release the bowl, it results
in another panic attack, and so every new attempt is a new attack
and you can't stop it until your brain finally allows you to let go
of the bowl. “The week before winning the Bowls England National Women's Singles I was playing in the u25 singles quarter final. My yips were the worst they had ever been, it was even to the point where mentally I couldn't even simply walk on to the mat. It is an odd concept to a lot of people but essentially my brain just wouldn't let me physically deliver the bowl! “There were a lot of spectators that day and I remember how humiliated I felt, I came off very upset and remember saying to my parents I was going to pull out of the singles as I didn't want to go through the trauma again.” Once she got home however, with the help of her parents Kirsty found an 'EFT therapist' which trains people to control anxiety with tapping techniques. Kirsty recalled: “It definitely helped distract me and reinstate positive thoughts. I combined this with meditation in between each round, and although my yips were still there, it just enabled me to carry on and manage it. “I didn't think I would be able to get through to singles event, and to actually go all the way and win it was incredible and really proved to myself how mentally strong I was. Winners never quit and quitters never win as they say....” Kirsty says that although she still has the odd blip, she has reached a stage where she feels in control. “My biggest coping mechanism now is to not focus on others,” she added. “I used to have such a pressure to deliver the bowl because I was scared as to how others may perceive me and would get thoughts in my head about people finding it funny which would only make me worse, but I have learnt now I can only control myself and I can't control other people. “Most people have been supportive of me and I am so thankful of that. I also try to have as many roll ups as I can - when I am confident in my ability I find I am much more in control of my delivery as it stops any self-doubt coming into my mind. Listening to meditation before important games also really helps, it really relaxes me, and I find the more relaxed I am the less chance I will have issues with my delivery.”  Something is working as Kirsty
was crowned British Isles women's pairs champion this year along
with partner Amy Walters, who she describes as “the most laid-back
person and incredible player”.She said: “If anyone is going through the yips or similar, you will get a lot of people try to give you advice (all from a good place), and you may get many people try to tell you to change your stance on the mat or the way you deliver a bowl which can become quiet overwhelming. “The yips is anxiety driven so try not to change too much physically, all you can do is try to relax yourself as much as possible and be as confident as possible. “For confidence I recommend practice, it just reinstates positivity, so that when you are in a game situation you can visualise that time when you had a roll up when you got four round the jack, and know that you can do the same again! “I also recommend playing with supportive teammates. I feel really lucky in that I know if I was to have a yips episode come on, that my team would never judge me and be nothing but supportive and patient. However, in the past my own team members have got frustrated. This isn't helpful and so it is important to get out of those set ups. “Bottomline though, stick at it! It is a testament to your own character and will make you stronger in the long run. “The whole thing took a massive strain on me mentally and is definitely the hardest thing I have had to go through. Sadly unless you have been through it, or something similar it is really easy to sit on the side lines and judge and not understand how such a simple task of delivering a bowl can be so difficult, but all I would ask is if anyone comes across a player with the yips of any form, please try to be respectful and try to empathise as much as you can.” Kirsty, a chartered accountant, and her twin brother were introduced to the game at the age of seven by bowls royalty, the late great David Bryant MBE. “My parents had a caravan in Skegness so we used to go down for a couple weeks in the school holidays,” she said. “One summer there was a big open day to give bowls a go and we happened to get David Bryant to coach us (not that we knew who how iconic he was at the time, given we were a family of non-bowlers!) “Once we were home my brother spotted a poster advertising junior bowls sessions at City of Birmingham Indoor Bowls Club. “The club had a junior singles and pairs league after school every Tuesday. I loved it, not just bowls itself with it being so skilful, but also meeting others my age that played it too, back then we had about 35 juniors between the ages of seven and 18 show up every session.” Kirsty's first real taste of success came at the age of 13 when she reached the Bowls England National Junior Singles title, losing to Natalie Chestney. She played in her first junior indoor international series the same year and two years later was picked for the junior team outdoors. After years of enjoyment from the game, the chartered accountant believes that resistance to change has prevented making bowls more attractive for younger players. Kirsty added: “The clothing also needs addressing, we have come a long way but are still quite far behind the Aussies for example. Some counties have been great in implementing new sports kits, but sadly there are still quite a few counties that still insist on showing up to games in specified coloured shoes and matching handbags. This is enough to put younger players off bowling and is such a simple fix. “Indoor bowls can also lack atmosphere and can be so quiet you can hear a penny drop at times. I think it would be good for more clubs to play background music. This has been introduced at the nationals in the last couple years, but I think it would be beneficial to just be able to walk into any club and that 'cold silence' be taken away. “Generally, I think there needs to be a big push to get more women into bowls, in particular those under the age of 25. Although I like the current formats, with indoors being a naturally longer game, I think the only way to attract more is to reduce the length of games so that it is more manageable.” Kirsty fully intends to be playing for many years to come and has set herself an ultimate goal. She said: “I want to win the national singles again, without the yips as I feel like it did ruin my experience slightly as there was a lot of pain to get there. Then if I was to be lucky enough to do that, I would love to win the World Champion of Champions. It would be amazing to give that another go as it was an incredible opportunity to play against some of the greatest players in the world.” Sian Honnor Previous ArticleYaz Hasan Previous Article Nick Brett Previous Article Andy Knapper Previous Article Jacqueline Henderson Previous Article Daniel Adams |
December 2022
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