Badminton star Kirsty Gilmour given yellow card after using bathroom break to deal with her period

A badminton player has called for rule changes after she was penalised for leaving the court to deal with her period during a match.

Three-time Olympian Kirsty Gilmour, 31, said her period had come a week early 30 minutes before her women’s singles clash with world number one An Se Young at the YONEX All England Open.

Gilmour, from Bellshill in North Lanarkshire, asked the umpire for a bathroom break after winning the second set to “fix the situation”, which she claims was “reluctantly” granted.

But she was then shown a yellow card by the referee for “delaying play” after failing to return within the allotted two minutes.

While the warning did not affect the score, Kirsty went on to lose the match 21-12, 16-21, 21-8.

Gilmour plays against An Se-young YONEX All England Open. Badminton World Federation Youtube

She told STV News: “I did everything as quickly as possible. I couldn’t change my shorts or anything.

“I wasn’t given the choice of ‘if you leave, you will get a yellow card; if you stay, you essentially bleed on court, but you won’t get a yellow card.’ It wasn’t explained to me.

“I tried to regroup, settle back for the last set, but it got away from me. It was a tough situation.

“I didn’t think too much about it in the moment, which was good. but as soon as i stepped off court, I knew I’d I get questions about it and become an unofficial spokesperson for having to deal with your period on court.”

Kirsty, who won a game against Young for only the second time in seven meetings, said the incident put her “at a disadvantage.”

“The momentum was with me and I wanted to keep it rolling. If I had a choice, I didn’t want any break in play,” she said.

“It wasn’t a tactic to get the match to go my way, it was already going my way. I wouldn’t have wanted to disrupt that rhythm at that time.

“Getting that yellow card didn’t fluster me. But that flustered feeling of getting off and on the court as fast as possible – because I had been met with some resistance in making that choice – I think that’s what disrupted me the most.

“I’ll never know whether running off or staying on court would have disrupted me more. It’s tough.”

Gilmour was shown yellow card by referee after coming back from the toilet. Badminton World Federation Youtube

Gilmour said the Badminton World Federation should introduce rules to ensure no other player faces a similar situation while menstruating in future.

“There’s a protocol if you need to go to the toilet, which is two minutes of the interval break. There’s a protocol if there’s a medical issue, (such as) if you cut your knee and there’s blood on the court.

“But in the ‘Venn diagram’ of toilet use and blood issues, there are no rules. They were making it up on the spot. In my view, we went with the wrong decision.

“I would just like there to be a protocol in place to ensure that athletes with periods are treated with some sort of dignity and leniency because it’s such a tough thing to manage while performing at a world-class level at the same time.

“If there’s any pushback about people using it as a tactic to delay the match, I think no person with a uterus wants to stand in front of a few thousand people and tell the umpire with a microphone that they are actively bleeding. Someone will only choose to do that in a real emergency.

“Some sort of leniency needs to be put in place in case this ever happens again.”

Gilmour said she hopes that such incidents do not discourage girls getting into sport.

She added: “There are so many positive changes in women’s sport, such as the introduction of non-mandatory white shorts. It’s those small things that make such a difference.

“Getting women into positions of power and authority in sports organisations, getting young girls and women into sport… Hopefully that’s a good cycle.”

Scottish Women In Sport CEO Maureen McMonigle STV News

Scottish Women In Sport CEO Maureen McGonigle backed Kirsty’s call for changes to the rules.

She said: “I think it’s very sad that in this day and age that we’re still having this conversation. It shouldn’t be taboo – it’s part and parcel of being a woman.

“So much work has been carried out to help people understand women’s health in sport and the far-reaching impact it can have.

“We are different, but we need equal opportunity and a different understanding of what we can and can’t do in terms of our bodies.

“It’s only natural for people to understand how uncomfortable the thought is, having a situation arise where people are watching and you’re having a bleed. I don’t need research to know that would halt participation in sport for many young girls.

“Someone like Kirsty speaking out will make it easier for many other young girls in the future. She’s strong enough to deal with it and put her head above the parapet. It always takes a catalyst.”

STV News reached out to the Badminton World Federation for comment.