Ibiza badminton player Carmen Jiménez is continuing to make progress on the international circuit, with a Mediterranean Games bronze medal and a series of encouraging results alongside doubles partner Nikol Carulla.

Jiménez, born in Ibiza on February 4, 2006, is now 20 and is in her third season competing at senior level. She has represented Spain internationally and is based at Madrid's High Performance Centre, where she combines elite badminton training with her university studies.

Bronze in Taranto

One of Jiménez's biggest results came in August at the 2026 Mediterranean Games in Taranto, Italy.

Partnering Carulla in women's doubles, the Spanish pair defeated Slovenia's Anja Blazina and Ariana Korent 21-15, 21-7 in the quarter-finals, guaranteeing themselves a medal. They then lost their semi-final to France's Agathe Cuevas and Elsa Jacob, 22-20, 21-12, securing bronze.

The result gave Spanish badminton two bronze medals in Taranto, with Pablo Abián also reaching the podium in the men's singles competition.

For Jiménez, the medal came after a difficult transition from junior to senior competition.

She explained that moving into the senior category can be challenging after achieving frequent results as a junior, with the level of competition changing significantly. Her approach, she said, has been to remain patient, continue working and allow the results to develop over time.

A Partnership Developing on Court

Jiménez and Carulla have now been playing together for around two years.

Jiménez said their experience together has helped them become increasingly synchronised on court, while their good relationship away from competition also makes the partnership easier.

Their results in Taranto were followed by another positive performance in Belgium earlier this month. The pair defeated Cuevas and Jacob in the opening round of the Belgian International before losing in the second round to Scotland's Julie Macpherson and Ciara Torrance.

The victory over the French pair was particularly notable because Cuevas and Jacob had beaten Jiménez and Carulla in the Mediterranean Games semi-final less than two weeks earlier.

Training and Studying in Madrid

Jiménez has been training at the Blume High Performance Centre in Madrid since 2024.

Alongside her badminton career, she is studying Mathematics and Data Science at the Complutense University of Madrid.

She has described life at the centre as demanding both physically and mentally, with discipline and established routines helping her balance high-level training and university studies.

Her selection for the Mediterranean Games followed a busy international summer. The Spanish Badminton Federation included Jiménez and Carulla in the national team for Taranto after the pair had also competed at the World Championships in New Delhi.

Staying Connected to Ibiza

Despite spending much of her time training and competing away from the island, Jiménez remains part of the Pitiús badminton club.

She says she considers it her home club and wants to continue playing for the team whenever her international schedule allows.

Jiménez also credits the coaches who worked with her from a young age, highlighting the role of Ibiza's badminton development system in helping produce players capable of reaching the international circuit.

Olympic Ambition

Jiménez's long-term ambition is to compete at the Olympic Games.

She has identified qualification for Los Angeles 2028 as a short-term objective, while also recognising that reaching an Olympic Games requires continuing to develop over the coming seasons. She has also spoken about Brisbane 2032 as a longer-term goal.

Her next scheduled international competition is the Arctic Open in Vantaa, Finland, which is due to take place from October 6 to 11.

For now, Jiménez's recent results provide a clear indication of her progression at senior level, following her move from junior competition into an increasingly demanding international circuit.