Auchinleck Bowling Club will have strong representation at this year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

One woman flying the flag for East Ayrshire is Hannah Smith, who is appearing at her second Commonwealth Games – for two different countries.

Having represented her home nation of Wales in 2010, Hannah’s allegiance now lies with Scotland.

Hannah is already a three-time World Championship medallist, winning silver in the Fours and bronze in the Triples in 2008 before adding a further bronze in the Fours in 2012.

Now she has her sights set on adding to her medal collection when she pulls on the Scottish jersey in Birmingham in the summer.

Having started out her bowling journey form the age of nine after watching her dad play, Hannah has worked tirelessly to get to the position she is in just now.

And she doesn’t want to take any of her journey for granted as she looks towards what she expects to be a successful games for Scotland.

Hannah Said: “My journey started when I was about nine years old. I had watched my dad play for a while and one day I got fed up and asked if I could have a shot, and from there I’ve really just loved the sport.

“There is a lot of hard work and commitment gone in between that first shot and leading to now, and everything else in between.

“There are certain sacrifices you have to make as well, but when you set yourself goals and targets, you have to try and do what you can to achieve them.

“I’ve got a great support network behind me as well that have been keeping me going and keeping me on track.

“The coaches are great because they deal with a lot of stuff and they let us just focus on the performance aspect.

“You put in all the hard work and then when you manage to achieve your dreams of representing your country and your local club, it’s a complete honour. It’s really hard to put into words.

“We have got a great team and I think we should be aiming to at least medal”.

The 2022 Commonwealth Games run from Thursday, July 28 until Monday, August 8, with the Lawn Bowls and Para Lawn Bowls events running from July 29 until August 6.