Xander Hurley, from Abingdon, is setting his sights on competing for Britain's badminton team at the 2009 Deaflympics in Taipei.

The 31-year-old has competed in the 2006 European Deaf Championships and the following year's World Championships. Now he wants to go one step futher.

Hurley, a software engineer at Abingdon-based Research Machines, said: “I’ve been playing for six years. My ultimate ambition is to make the British squad for the Deaflympics."

Hurley was born deaf, and his parents were told that his deafness was so severe that he would never learn to speak.

He said: “They were told that my only prospect was to work in a factory.

"But my parents spent a lot of time and effort helping me, and with their support and a speech therapist, I can now communicate for work.”

He has worked for RM since February 2005 and says that being deaf has never been an issue at the company, who have helped him compete.

He is training hard in preparation for the games with a fitness regime before and after work.

Hurley will next be competing against his hearing peers in the Oxfordshire Restricted Tournament on September 27.