British badminton duo Anthony Clark and Donna Kellogg have been defeated in the final of the mixed doubles event at the French Open.

The pair were beaten by the Chinese duo of He Hanbin and Yu Yang, who were seeded second in the tournament and had previously beaten the British pair at the Olympics this year. Clark and Kellogg were eventually beaten 21-13, 21-19 in a match which lasted for 42 minutes.

The British duo had been hoping to win the match following an impressive performance in the quarter-final and semi-final of the tournament. They managed to beat Xu Chen and Pan Pan 15-21, 21-13, 21-19 in a match lasting almost one hour at the quarter-final stage.

The semi-finals saw them competing against Nova Widianto and Lilivana Natsir. The duo managed to win silver at the Olympics and have been victorious in the World Championships twice, so Clark and Kellogg needed to be at their best to stand any chance of success. Luckily for British badminton fans, they won 25-23, 23-21 in a match which lasted just 45 minutes.

Clark and Kellogg can be proud of their achievements in the French Open. However, badminton legend Nathan Robertson and his new partner, Jenny Wallwork, have been left feeling disappointed after losing 21-17, 21-19 to Malaysia’s Koo Kien Keat and Wong Peil Tty.

Clark and Kellogg will have given their chances of reaching the top eight (who will all qualify for the Super Series Masters final scheduled for December) a real boost.

Before you rush off to buy your next badminton racket it's a good idea to know the basics.

What a performance by Gail Emms & Nathan Robertson. I was watching it here at TalkBadminton HQ whilst eating a spot of lunch and got a bit carried away.

A quite tremendous performance by the Silver medalists from Athens who now have a real shot at going all the way!

Most badminton players are familiar with the notion that lower racket string tensions give more power, and that higher racket string tensions give more control.

A useful look at how different badminton rackets can cause injuries, and how to avoid potential injuries.

After the 2008 Olympics Gail Emms will be retiring. Her doubles partner Nathan Robertson plans to compete at the London 2012 Olympics after her retirement.

Her 25 ranking in Europe and world singles ranking of 65 has earned Chloe Magee a place in the Beijing Olympics in August.

Vaughan's loss to Prrzemyslaw Wacha in the European Championships third round means he will not be travelling to the Olympics this year.

"I will probably retire now. I don't have any funding. I have bills to pay so it's time to stop," said Vaughan

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