Badminton Magazine

Transcription

Badminton Magazine - June 2006

ISSUE 28 | JUNE 2006 | PRICE £3.00
MAGAZINE
DOUBLES
COACHING TIPS
BY GEORGE WOOD
SCORING DEBATE
- A RESULT
EUROPEAN
CHAMPIONSHIPS &
COMMONWEALTH
GAMES REVIEWS
CONTENTS
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
05 ERIC BROWN ACTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE
WHAT’S THE SCORE?
06 RICHARD EATON COMMENTS ON THE OUTCOME
RALLY POINTS - WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?
07 AN EXPLANATION OF HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
Front Cover
Nathan Robertson & Gail Emms,
Commonwealth Games Mixed Doubles
Champions 2006.
BADMINTON ENGLAND
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09 MEMBERS NEWS FROM GERRY CRONIN
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
10 RICHARD EATON REVIEWS THE CHAMPIONSHIPS
CLUBLIFE
13 NIKKI RICHARDSON ON JUNIOR BADMINTON IN ESSEX
VOLUNTEERS
14 BEING A LINE JUDGE
A DAY IN A LIFE OF FERN GILDERS
15 AN INSIGHT INTO THE YONEX YOUNG VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR 2005
BISI
17 BIG RESOURCE PACKS ARE HERE!
THOMAS AND UBER CUPS
18 RICHARD EATON REVIEWS THE EVENT
REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
21 SUE SUTTON WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UNDER-17 HARROD INTER-COUNTIES
22 DANIEL WRIGHT COMMENTS ON THE TOURNAMENT
COMMONWEALTH GAMES REVIEW
24 RICHARD EATON REVIEWS THE EVENT IN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
RACHEL HOWARD PLAYER PROFILE
29 GETTING TO KNOW RACHEL HOWARD
FIRST IMPRESSIONS COUNT
30 COACHING TIPS FOR DOUBLES PLAYERS
INTERNATIONAL ROUND-UP
33 INTERNATIONAL NEWS
POST BAG
35 LETTERS AND SNIPPETS
TOURNAMENT ROUND UP
39 WHO’S WINNING WHAT IN THE WORLD OF BADMINTON
COUNTY ROUND UP
41 REGIONAL NEWS
NATIONAL RANKINGS
42 NATIONAL RANKINGS AT A GLANCE
NATHAN V TIGER
45 JUST HOW FAST IS BADMINTON COMPARED TO OTHER SPORTS?
5 MINUTE BREAK
46 COMPETITION RESULT, LIFE AFTER 40...
BADMINTONMAGAZINE June 2006 | 03
www.badmintonengland.co.uk
FROM THE ACTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE
The aim of the International Badminton Federation (IBF) is to make badminton
the number one racket sport in the World. To achieve this aim, according to Bobby
Millroy (Chair of Players’ Federation), it is important that badminton seek solutions
and not highlight problems. Although I do not agree entirely with this statement
(which is a problem) I do agree with adopting a positive approach and for that
reason I am going to highlight the positives of this year.
There has been a lot of time and money spent on issues
between different factions of International Badminton. There
are good reasons to be optimistic about the game and hopefully
after this year’s experience the game will move on. The one
clear message is that BADMINTON England needs to be involved
at European and World level.
On the home front I must start by congratulating the Under 17
team that represented England in the Six Nations for winning
this event for the first time. This event, which started in 1978
has always been won by Denmark, so we have broken the mould
and must look forward to further success. Not only did we win
the team event, but followed on with a tally of four Gold Medals
out of a possible five.
The sceptical question will be, are the Danes weak or do we
have a good squad? The answer in the most decisive of terms
is that we have a very good squad and I was sorry that I missed
the occasion. There are certainly potential podium athletes in
this squad, although 2012 may be too early for them, but who
knows with the right environment and encouragement anything
is possible.
Other results have not perhaps been as good as we might have
expected, but they have been on target, which from a funding
point of view is important. There is no doubt that the severe
overcrowding of events on the international calendar was at
the root of the problem. We did exceedingly well to qualify for
the Thomas and Uber Cup finals, our Commonwealth results
were excellent and, despite the fact the team had to fly across
the World, our team performed creditably in the European
Championships. But something had to give, and several players
returned from Den Bosch with injuries (ten days play on a hard
floor with a relentless schedule) and were not able to represent
us in Tokyo. Yes, we are disappointed and our solution is to try
to make sure that the international calendar is set earlier,
avoiding late changes in dates.
As a company we have also had a very good year and can look
forward to a constructive year ahead. The one area of
disappointment for us is that of membership. Although we have
not lost a significant number of members and are pleased with
our recruitment of junior members, we are concerned about
the level of losses at senior club level. Some of the loss could
be down to the demographics of our game, but that only
accounts for a part of the loss. We have therefore decided to
investigate our membership packages with a view to making
changes in the future.
At the beginning of July, we lose another valuable member
of staff to Sport England when George Wood, our Coaching
Manager, takes up the new role of Senior Case Officer. George
is a passionate badminton enthusiast, a bit of a player who has
performed key tasks for the Association with true commitment
and professionalism. George will be missed and I would like to
wish him every success on behalf of the Association. I would
also like to highlight my particular pleasure in seeing Tracey
Hallam, whom I have seen play since she was twelve, winning
Commonwealth Gold. Years and years of hard work and sacrifice
rewarded at last.
This will possibly be my last report to you as Acting Chief
Executive as we are now into the process of recruiting a new
Chief Executive. We hope to announce the new appointee soon
after June 14th and it is expected that this person will start
within three months of that date. Were I significantly younger,
I might have been tempted to stay on, but feel that the right
move for the Association is to find someone with more drive,
energy and expertise than I have to take this Association
forward. I will of course give any support required to the new
Chief Executive and do anything I can to make the appointment
a success.
SCORING DEBATE
WHAT’S THE
SCORE?
By Richard Eaton,
Badminton Correspondent for The Times.
The badminton world has the difficult but important task of trying to pull
together following the announcement that the 21-up point-per-rally scoring,
which attracted much controversy during a brief and unexpected trial period,
has been adopted by the International Badminton Federation (IBF).
The IBF believes this system is easier for
the public to understand; its opponents
argue that it does not produce the
frequent crisis points television executives
say is required - which is why the
International Table Tennis Federation
abandoned a similar system.
Many people tried hard to view the trial
period positively. Players did not want
negative attitudes which could affect
performances, and administrators wanted
to make comments which give badminton
a decent image.
But there was uncertainty. Nora Perry,
England’s twice former World Champion
summed this up. “I am not necessarily
against it,” she said, “But I need to be
convinced it will achieve what it’s
created for - something shorter and
more commercial.
“If the serve was over it was always my
ambition to get it back, but you don’t have
to concentrate on that because you score
points regardless. It will make players
more defensive.
“I’m not saying we shouldn’t change, but
we are not talking enough about it. I don’t
think people have had enough time or
enough information back from players.”
It was used for the first time in this country
in the international against Denmark at
Preston in March, when England’s 3-2 win
was their first against their old rivals in two
decades. Was it a coincidence it happened
with 21-up scoring?
“It’s nice to beat Denmark but I don’t think
the scoring had a great effect,” said Ian
Wright, England’s Head Coach. “Although
I think perhaps the crowd were
nonplussed by it.”
06 | BADMINTONMAGAZINE June 2006
It was an odd match, with the outcome
of all five encounters predictable, but
at least the result hinged on the last
encounter, in which Robertson and Emms
repeated their 2005 Yonex All England
final victory over Thomas Laybourn and
Kamilla Rytter Juhl, by 21-11 21-16.
That was perfect for television.
It also created a feel good send-off for
the Commonwealth Games and a chance
to adapt to the new scoring.
“I had just played a club match in
Denmark with three games to 11,” said
Hallam, “Then I came back and played
21-up. So it was a bit strange.”
She had a different view after she had
become Commonwealth Champion.
Article Images:
Donna Kellogg & Gail Emms, Kamilla Juhl
& Lene Frier Kristiansen, Nora Perry
RALLY POINTS –
WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?
This is a simplified guide to rally points scoring – for full details, check the
BADMINTON England web site, or the IBF site www.worldbadminton.net
SCORING SYSTEM
●
●
SIMPLIFIED NEW RALLY POINTS SCORING SYSTEM
A match consists of the best of 3 games
of 21 points.
Course of action /
Explanation
The side winning a rally adds a point to
its score.
●
At 20 all, the side which gains a 2 point
lead first, wins that game.
●
At 29 all, the side scoring the 30th
point, wins that game.
●
The side winning a game serves first in
the next game.
INTERVAL AND CHANGE OF ENDS
●
When the leading score reaches 11 points,
players have a 60 second interval.
●
A 2 minute interval between each game
is allowed.
●
In the third game, players change ends
when the leading score reaches 11 points.
SINGLES
●
●
●
At the beginning of the game (0-0) and
when the server’s score is even, the
server serves from the right service
court. When the server’s score is odd,
the server serves from the left
service court.
If the server wins a rally, the server
scores a point and then serves again
from alternate service court.
If the receiver wins a rally, the receiver
scores a point and becomes the new
server. They serve from the appropriate
service court – left if their score is odd,
and right if it is even.
DOUBLES
●
●
Under the traditional scoring system
each side (except at the start of a
game) were given two hands, now they
only receive one hand. For example,
instead of two sets of serves before
handing over to your opponents, a side
now only has one set.
The service passes consecutively to the
players as shown in the diagram.
At the beginning of the game and when
the score is even, the server serves from
the right service court. When it is odd, the
server serves from the left court.
Score
Service from
Service Court
Server &
Receiver
Winner of
the rally
0-0
Right Service
Court.
A serves to C.
A is the initial
server & C the
initial receiver
A&B
A & B win the point and
will change service
courts. A serves again
from left service court.
C & D do not change
service courts.
1-0
C & D win the point and
therefore the right to
serve. Nobody will
change their respective
service courts.
1-1
serve. Nobody will
service courts.
2-1
serve. Nobody will
service courts.
2-2
will change service
courts. C serves again
from left service court.
A & B do not change
service courts.
3-2
serve. Nobody will
service courts.
3-3
will change service
courts. A serves again
from right service court.
C & D do not change
service courts.
4-3
Left Service Court
as the server's
score is odd.
A serves to D
Left Service Court
as the server's
score is odd.
D serves to A.
Right Service Court
as the server's
score is even
B serves to C
Right Service Court
as the server's
score is even
C serves to B
Left Service Court
as the server's
score is odd.
C serves to A
Left Service Court
as the server's
score is odd.
A serves to C
Right Service Court
as the server's
score is even
A serves to D
C
D
B
A
C
D
A
B
C
D
A
B
C
D
A
B
C
D
A
B
D
C
A
B
D
C
A
B
D
C
B
A
C&D
A&B
C&D
C&D
A&B
A&B
C&D
●
●
If the serving side wins a rally, the
serving side scores a point and the same
server serves again from the alternate
service court.
●
If the receiving side wins a rally, the
receiving side scores a point. The receiving
side becomes the new serving side.
●
The players do not change their
respective service courts until they
win a point when their side is serving.
●
If players commit an error in the service
court, the error is corrected when the
mistake is discovered.
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MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
In my last article, I opened a discussion about why clubs are folding? I did
provoke some response, and whilst some agreed that it is lack of players, and others
that there were issues with getting people to run clubs and events, one member
rang me to explain how he saw the situation.
His view was that the cost of courts was crippling many clubs.
His club used to play twice a week, once for league matches and
one club night. Due to the rapid increase in costs, they had to
reduce to one night a week – and the club night was axed. This of
course, meant that non-league players were not getting games and
left the club.
Finance was certainly seen as an issue for many clubs, and whilst
they wanted to apply for grants, lottery money etc, they felt that
they had to jump through too many hoops and they couldn’t find
anyone within the club to take on that responsibility. Their court
costs had risen by £1500 a year, hence the cancelling of one of the
sessions. Thank you “Mr Smith” for your comments.
BADMINTON England have arranged a deal with a company called
IBELONG. If you shop online, IBELONG is a shopping portal that
offers a unique fund raising opportunity to raise money for your
club. Simply sign up via their web site www.ibelonguk.com and
nominate your club as your elected charity, any shopping you do
via the IBELONG web portal will gain your club money for new
equipment, court costs etc. From the web portal you can access
all the popular shops i.e. Tesco, B&Q, Currys, John Lewis, WHSmith,
and many more. So if you shop online, then jump to your favourite
site via the IBELONG web portal and earn extra cash for your club.
This is my last column with a “Membership” hat on . . . I am
handing over that mantle to Christine Johnson who joins
BADMINTON England as Commercial Manager. Chris joins us
from many years in the photographic industry, and she will be
responsible for membership, sponsorship and commercial
contracts and agreements, and all commercial activities for
BADMINTON England.
My role will now be as Marketing and Media Manager – looking
after all aspects of marketing, including magazine, web site, new
media opportunities, PR, and responsibility for maintaining the
BADMINTON England brand.
LYNNE TRUSS
Lynne Truss is the author of the bestseller Talk to the Hand,
The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today, Six Good Reasons to
Stay Home and Bolt the Door and The Lynne Truss Treasury. Eats,
Shoots & Leaves, for which she won Britain's Book of the Year Award,
has sold more than three million copies worldwide. Lynne is a regular
host on BBC Radio 4, a Times (London) columnist, and the author of
numerous radio comedy dramas. She lives in Brighton, England.
What do you do to keep fit?
Far too little. But I do take long walks on Brighton seafront, make
occasional visits to the gym ... and play badminton with some
chums at Sussex University, whenever I'm free on the right night.
Why do you play badminton?
I can play it without taking it too seriously, and I find it very
companionable. I also enjoy the sensation of improvement,
although this may not be detectable to others.
Who do you play badminton with?
One of my best friends, who teaches in Sussex; plus several of his
friends and colleagues. There's a group of around 25 people on the
email list, and usually a group of between six and twelve will
assemble, so we manage with two or three courts for a couple of
hours, and then go and drink beer afterwards. I really enjoy the beer!
Who would you most like to play badminton against?
A small child with co-ordination issues who forgot to bring his glasses.
Then I got quite serious about it in my twenties, taking earlymorning lessons at the YMCA in London from a semi-professional
player called Horace. I was quite good. Then we would spend hours
on clears and serves and net strategy, all of which hard-acquired
skill has now abandoned me completely.
What do you think the image of badminton is in England?
I don't know, but I imagine it's not very cool.
What do you think we can do to encourage kids to play badminton?
Lower the nets?
If you had more time in the day, what would you do?
Read Victorian novels.
Are you working on a new book at the moment?
I've just finished a new radio comedy series, and the next project is
a stage play.
Can you read any book without checking it for punctuation?!
No. It's sad, really.
When did you start playing badminton?
I started playing when I was at school, around the age of 15.
TOUGH FOR
GOLDEN GAIL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS 2006
By Richard Eaton,
DEN BOSCH, NETHERLANDS, 12TH - 16TH APRIL 2006
It sounded good, but it was misleading. Gail Emms followed her Gold Medal in Mixed
Doubles at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne with another Gold in the Women’s
Doubles at the European Championships in Den Bosch.
Golden Gail doubles up – it had a celebtinged sound, getting her conveniently
short name into the headlines. All credit
to her because, exhausted, half-injured
and already disappointed, she struggled
for this title like never before. But the
alliterative image evaded two
inconvenient things. Firstly, Donna
Kellogg, who partnered Emms to their
hard-worked wins, culminating in the 21-12
21-10 triumph over Nicole Grether and
Juliane Schenk, was England’s most
successful player. Kellogg won a Gold and
two Bronze Medals, and for her to regain
the European Women’s Doubles title after
a six-year interval and persistent injuries,
was a brave and brilliant effort.
Secondly, with a half-decent schedule
England might have picked up three Gold
Medals and their best haul since the great
days of 1984. But their leading players were
in no fit state to perform at their best.
To expect professional athletes to return
from half way round the world, recover
from the emotional and physical upheaval
of a major event, and compete in an
important tournament again within eleven
days, is unfair. This made Emms’ and
Kellogg’s success a special achievement,
which Ian Wright, England’s Head Coach,
emphasised. “It was fantastic. Gail was
also emotionally drained with the Mixed
Doubles result,” he said, referring to the
European title she and Nathan Robertson
lost with a bizarre third round defeat to
Kristof Hopp and Birgit Overzier, a pair of
unseeded Germans.
“She had every reason to quit on the
tournament when that went against her,”
emphasised Wright. “She was already
really struggling and tired after the
team event. But she stood up and was
very strong.
“She had injury problems (ankle) but we
couldn’t rest her and she was still looking
out for the team. We were also within one
or two points of pulling Donna out in the
team event with a back injury. It was
quite serious.
“For two or three days Gail ran around
Donna, but Donna was very strong and
stood up and played. Both had every
reason to say enough is enough. If anyone
deserved Gold it was them.”
Method as well as attitude made it
possible. Emms' capacity to be stronger
in the back court where she is less
comfortable, and Kellogg's improved
touch in the forecourt were technical
improvements which made them tactically
more flexible. This denied Grether and
Schenk options when trying to pull Emms
out of position. Nevertheless the secondseeded Germans ground out lengthy,
demanding rallies, which required
patience and resilience to survive.
Emms and Kellogg had also beaten
Grether and Schenk, and aches and pains,
while clinching England’s team Bronze
five days earlier with a 3-2 win over
Germany. But the success felt a little like
a disappointment.
A fit England team might have won the
European title for the first time in twentytwo years. They had beaten the defending
Champions Denmark in a friendly at
Preston the previous month and were
denied the chance to repeat it by the
narrowest of 3-2 semi-final losses to The
Netherlands. During this, Aamir Ghaffar
led Dicky Palyama, the World No.19, by a
game and 14-8 before losing 13-21 21-16
21-17. Ghaffar also lost in three in the
Men’s Singles to Joachim Persson,
a seeded Dane, which was frustrating but
hardly blameworthy.
A similar assessment seems to fit Tracey
Hallam’s third round loss to Tine Hoy, the
Danish No.1, whom she overcame at
Preston shortly before her Commonwealth
Games triumph - and there were similar
post-Melbourne blues elsewhere.
Robert Blair and Anthony Clark saw a 17-11
final game lead evaporate against Carsten
Mogensen and Mathias Boe, the secondseeded Danes, and lost 21-17 11-21 21-18.
Although Clark and Kellogg’s 21-16 21-14
semi-final loss to Jens Eriksen and Mette
Schjoldager, the former All England
Champions, was less heart-rending, they
too may have wondered how much closer
they could have got.
Besides Emms’ ankle and Kellogg’s back
there were injuries to Robertson’s elbow,
Hallam’s left shoulder, Clark’s left shoulder,
and Ghaffar’s right shoulder. No wonder
that Wright, annoyed at his players being
made to play on a stone floor, made a
written complaint to the European
Badminton Union.
Men’s Singles:
Peter Gade (DEN) bt Joachim Persson
(DEN) 24-22, 21-10
Robertson might unwittingly have been
speaking for them all when he said, “I
even tried stamping on the shuttle to try
to get some anger going. It is hard to
motivate ourselves when you can only
play at 60 percent.”
Men’s Doubles:
Martin Lundgaard Handsen & Jens
Eriksen (DEN) bt Carsten Mogensen &
Mathias Boe (DEN) 21-15, 21-17
Article Images:
Women’s Singles:
Xu Huaiwen (GER) bt Mia Audina (NED)
15-21, 21-9, 21-16
Women’s Doubles:
Donna Kellogg & Gail Emms (ENG) bt
Juliane Schenk & Nicole Grether (GER)
21-12, 21-10
Page 10 – Donna Kellogg & Gail Emms
Page 11 – from top left - Aamir Ghaffar, Team England,
Robert Blair & Anthony Clark, Aamir Ghaffar, Thomas
Layborn & Kamilla Juhl, Peter Gade
Mixed Doubles:
Thomas Layborn & Kamilla Juhl (DEN) bt
Jens Eriksen & Mette Schjoldager (DEN)
22-20, 21-15
CLUBLIFE!
ESSEX JUNIOR BADMINTON
and effort. To fund these we applied for an
‘Awards for All’ grant and after much form
filling our application was submitted in
July 2005. We were delighted when four
weeks later £4,623 was deposited into our
club bank account. Since then we have
run Level 1 and Level 2 Coach Awards with
Sheila Collins from Middlesex as tutor.
Over twelve months ago, with the
demand from youngsters wanting to play
badminton going through the roof, Nikki
and Eric Richardson, supported by a
number of other coaches, players and
enthusiasts, created ‘Essex Junior
Badminton – Colchester’, aimed at the
development of junior badminton in the
Colchester and Tendring areas. After
several meetings and an inaugural
Annual General Meeting the club was up
and running with four main objectives:1. To run the Colchester based Essex
County District Squad
2. To run the Annual Colchester Junior
Badminton Tournament
3. To identify new coaches to run junior
clubs and facilitate their training
The season’s programme for the County
District Squad, which has been running for
five years, was finalised in September,
with the appointment of John Scott as
Lead Junior Coach. Our players have
greatly benefited from these sessions and
their skills have developed considerably
with some excellent tournament results.
The Colchester Junior Badminton
Tournament, held over three days at
Colchester Leisure World during the
February half term for U13’s, U15’s and
U17’s, saw the largest entry in its sixteen
year history. The event, supported by
Yonex/Brentwood Sports is for grass roots
players who have not played for the
County. It attracted over 230 entries and
is possibly one of the biggest grass roots
tournaments in the country.
Working with newly qualified L1 and L2
coaches, I have so far established three
new junior clubs:- Tip Top Junior
Badminton Club (Tiptree), Colbayns Junior
Badminton Club (Clacton) and Colne
Pioneer Juniors (Brightlingsea) and am
currently working on setting up two
further clubs in the Colchester area.
Although it’s been hard work, the uptake
for members has been well beyond our
expectations and some clubs now have
waiting lists.
One final piece of news, Essex Junior
Badminton – Colchester have now been
awarded BADMINTON England Silver Club,
Sport England Clubmark and Club SX Gold
accreditation which confirms us as a safe,
effective and child-friendly club.
Anyone who is interested in helping,
coaching etc. in the Colchester area
please let us know, we intend to
grow further!!!
Nikki Richardson
Secretary
Essex Junior Badminton – Colchester
4. To establish new junior badminton
Coach training and the creation of new
clubs in the Colchester and Tendring area junior clubs has taken a great deal of time
Do you have a story about life in YOUR
club? If so, please send it to:
Rachel Pullan, Editorial Manager,
Badminton Magazine,
c/o iSPORTmarketing,
Warwickshire, CV8 1HU or email:
rachel.pullan@isportmarketing.com
THE BEST SEAT IN THE ARENA
By Julia Strong, Regional Development Manager - East
Some would argue that the best seat in the badminton arena is reserved for the
umpire or service judge. Rizvan Sadikot, a line judge and Umpire from Strichley in
Birmingham disagrees. He believes the best seats in the arena belong to the line
judges. Why? Because you get to watch fantastic badminton and only have to make
a decision at the end of the rally should the shuttle land near or on your allocated line.
Rizvan is a well travelled and experienced
line judge. Upon pursuing his career as an
umpire he was encouraged to observe the
best umpires in the world in action at the
Yonex All England Championships. Since
1996 Rizvan has been a line judge at every
All England Championship, as well as at
the Nationals for the past three years.
In addition to our own badminton
spectacles, Rizvan has worked the line at
just about every major badminton event
worldwide. This means he has travelled
across Europe, the USA and Canada and
most recently, the highlight of his career
to date, the Commonwealth Games in
Melbourne. In 2004 he was undoubtedly
very proud to be nominated as team
leader for the World Junior
Championships in Canada, and was then
selected as an international line judge for
the World Championships in Anaheim in
2005. Rizvan knows none of this would
have been possible if he had not taken
that first step back in 1996.
He told me, “The enjoyment of working
with other volunteers from different parts
of this country and the rest of the world
is second to none. It gives you a great
feeling of camaraderie and you make a
lot of friends with the same interests.”
However, Rizvan was quick to remind me
that it is not all glamour, it can be very
hard work and the days are long. With
all that said what a way to see the world
and watch the best badminton in the
world whilst having fun. What next?
The World Championships in Madrid.
This is a small insight into what Rizvan
has achieved as a volunteer line judge
and hopes his story will encourage some
of you out there to get involved. You can
start in a small way by volunteering at a
local event in your area and as they say
‘the world is your oyster’.
For more information about becoming
a line judge, please contact Keith Lindsay,
Hon Secretary of the Line Judges
Association on 020 8590 3677.
This will be my last volunteer article until
the Yonex Awards next year. I would like
to take this opportunity to thank all the
volunteers, in particular John Murphy,
who gave up their time to get involved
in the Volunteer Workshops back in
February and helping Tammy Sansome
and myself put together the new
Volunteer Strategy.
Some of you may already be aware that
Tammy has left BADMINTON England and
moved to New Zealand. She will be
missed and I wish her all the best in her
new life. BADMINTON England’s loss is
definitely New Zealand’s gain. In the next
issue we will introduce BADMINTON
England’s new Volunteer Co-ordinator.
APOLOGY: In the last magazine, we
incorrectly stated that Martin Train was
from Durham. Martin is in fact from
Northumberland. Northumberland
Badminton Association said “We are very
proud of Martin’s achievements and his
contribution to our sport as a volunteer.”
Our apologies for this error.
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
FERN GILDERS
YONEX YOUNG VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR 2005
September 2005, I left my home in Milton Keynes
to study Sports Development at the University of
Gloucestershire. The campus which I now call home
facilitates sport related courses, which means that I am
lucky enough to live with some very like-minded people.
Living with these people twenty-four hours a day, seven
days a week, we could have been at each others
throats, but fortunately we get on like a house on fire.
How was I the only person on my floor
who managed to end up with a timetable
involving an early start every morning?!?
Talking until 2am, watching the dishes
pile up in the kitchen, fighting over
freezer space, late night revision sessions,
the life of a first year student is anything
but dull.
I have two lectures a day, four days a
week, with Wednesdays taken up by
BUSA matches. My first semester at
university was fairly chaotic. It was a time
of finding my feet, learning to cope on my
own, juggling cooking, getting my
computer to work, getting to places by
using maps and public transport and
university life in general.
My passion is, and always has been, my
sport. I think I have probably known since
I was in Year 7 that it was where I wanted
to be. When I first started playing, I didn’t
focus nearly as much as I wish I had now.
I know I gave at least one of my coach’s
grief at some stage. Only by becoming
a coach myself do I now appreciate how
difficult their job actually is!
I first started volunteering at a junior club
in Milton Keynes. This club has grown in
size from when I first started helping and
now on Friday nights at the National
Badminton Centre the courts are filled
with lively youngsters of varying
standards running round the courts.
On Monday nights I helped with County
squads, Wednesday’s I taught a small
group of very active boys, Thursday
I helped with after school club and Friday
was the junior club. Boring? Definitely
not, and hugely rewarding!
The saying goes ‘No-one can do
everything, but everyone can do
something.’ I may not have been
anywhere near the best player in the
country or even the county, but I still feel
my contribution has been worthwhile.
Not everyone can be a player, but there
are plenty more ways to become involved
which are equally as rewarding. I started
with a group of about four very young
children. After weeks of throwing shuttles
at them and encouraging them when they
continually missed, they all finally made it
out of the beginners group. It was very
satisfying seeing their progress. I don’t
know who was more excited when some
of them played in their first tournament them or me!
Last year I was invited to the ICT as a
trainee official, to learn the ropes and
help out. The officials often go unnoticed,
but it is important to realise that without
the volunteers, there would be no
tournament. It was great being involved
and the atmosphere was amazing.
Sport development is an area which is sure
to grow, especially with London winning
the 2012 Olympic bid. I hope
and believe that badminton will have
strengthened even more by that time.
I was recently lucky enough to attend the
first official meeting of the European
Badminton Youth Network. It is a youth
project and one which I believe has a
promising future. Its aim is to provide an
arena for the exchange and implementation
of ideas to improve the development of
youth badminton in Europe.
I play because I love the game, no matter
what standard I have achieved. I believe we
need to get children playing and enjoying
badminton at a younger age.
I like meeting new people and being part
of a bigger picture and working with a
team, so being involved in badminton
as a whole has been an interesting and
challenging experience for me.
Julia Strong, Yonex Volunteer Awards
Co-ordinator, says “Fern is a fantastic
young individual and more than deserved
the accolade she recently received.”
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Contact Sue Shelswell,
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SCHOOLS & JUNIORS
At last I am able to write and announce that the first BIG resource pack has
been launched! This is the first in a series of seven packs which are being
produced to support both teachers and coaches to enable young people to
achieve as both badminton players and true athletes.
The BIG philosophy is, I believe, unique in that it supports the
delivery of a pathway which reflects the principles of functional
motor development and Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD)
as well as addressing the acquisition of badminton skills.
If one considers the athleticism needed to be a Gold Medal
winner in our sport, as well as the high level of skill and tactical
ability, it makes sense to endeavour to support the movement
ability of a young player as well as their skill development. BIG
has been produced with the vision of focusing in the early years
on developing high quality movement skills which are then
refined and reinforced as racket skills and tactics are introduced
and developed. What we hope to support is a focus on giving
a secure foundation to success in badminton!
A stable pyramid that provides a reliable foundation for any
form of movement and sporting success:
The first pack is really exciting and is focused on the 3-7 year
age range – already well received by teachers who work within
the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1. However, the resources
are not designed just for teachers. Coaches have also been at
the centre of our thinking and the BIG resource will hopefully
allow coaches to really enjoy developing their young players
through a programme specifically aimed to support LTAD and
provide true physical literacy for our young aspiring players.
The first tutor training was held at Milton Keynes in early May –
the day was a great success and I look forward to supporting
them in the early days as BIG becomes the new ‘must have’
for everyone!
BIG Phase 1
Establishing primary movements (Gait, squat,
lunge, push, pull/rotate, flexion)
BIG Phase 2
Mastering the components of functional
development
BIG Phase 3
Generalised and specialised movement skill
acquisition
BIG Phase 3a Generalised – Traditional agility, balance,
co-ordination and speed, strength and
quickness, referenced with developing
a comprehensive movement programme
BIG Phase 3b Specialised - Introducing technical and sport
specific foundation criteria
BIG Phase 4a Getting stronger, fitter, faster and better
BIG Phase 4b Developing technical and tactical ability
BIG Phase 5
An unstable pyramid that produces a foundation of movement
ability that is prone to toppling into failure or injury:
Competitive play, dedicated training
To support the BIG programme Bisi has taken on a new role – Bisi
will now be a series of game ideas and activities, ideally placed
to give coaches and teachers plenty of ideas to increase their
repertoire, and bring fun enjoyment and learning to their
sessions and lessons. Each pack is colour coded to the BIG phase
they support. The first pack (A) will be available later in the year.
Bisi Pack A
Early Introduction to badminton activity
Bisi Pack B
Introducing racket skills
Bisi Pack C
Establishing games
Bisi Pack D
Routines and set plays
I think my final ‘it’s new!’ is the Junior Helper Award – a six hour
leadership course for thirteen years plus – this course has
already been run in a number of areas and has been heralded
a real success by the young people involved.
THOMAS AND UBER CUPS
THOMAS AND
THOMAS AND UBER CUPS 2006
By Richard Eaton,
TOKYO, JAPAN, 28TH APRIL - 7TH MAY 2006
The most striking thing about creditable performances from largely inexperienced
English players at the Thomas and Uber Cups finals in Japan was that eight of the best
known ones weren’t there.
One day international badminton will get
its house in order. Once again a lack of
liaison and of vision in decision-making
was revealed as England’s leading players
were unable to fulfill an absurd and
harmful schedule.
So many were injured after having to play
the European Championships so soon
after the Commonwealth Games that to
have continued competing might have
been career-damaging.
“It’s all down to the crazy schedule, with
players having to tackle three major
Championships in such a short time,”
explained Ian Wright, England’s frustrated
Head Coach.
And now this - world class players in
no fit state to take part in a prominent
tournament. It’s bad for morale and bad
for the image of the sport to be
constantly associated with criticisms, but
Wright also has to consider the moral
and legal implications of the welfare of
professional athletes.
“There have been a series of chronic
niggles which could cause long-term
damage if the players aren’t allowed to
recover,” he said. “We can’t keep relying
on injured players.
“It’s frustrating because we have been
on a good run with the team silver in
Melbourne and the team bronze in Den
Bosch. But the players aren’t machines.
They can’t go on and on without a break.”
One consolation was that playing
conditions were excellent when England’s
depleted squad arrived for the first stage
at a place called Sendai, which means City
of Green. Zelkova trees like leafy vases
lined the streets and the floors were
sprung with wood. It was easy on the eye
and, more crucially, easier on the body.
“With my history – the World
Championships at Anaheim (England were
hit by airline strike), Melbourne (drift in
the hall) and in Den Bosch (stone floors) that’s a huge relief,” agreed Wright.
“It was also a top quality hall, absolutely
full with spectators. Some of our players
are not very experienced and it should
give them more confidence.”
For the men it did. Chris Langridge made
a winning debut by clinching England’s
opening victory over the United States,
and three days later celebrated his 21st
birthday while travelling to Tokyo having
qualified for the second stage.
Langridge suggested he might have the
temperament and skills to develop further
as he and David Lindley beat Bob
Malaythong and Raju Rai 21-17 21-16 to
secure the 3-2 win. There were also
singles successes for National Champion
Nick Kidd and European Junior Champion
Rajiv Ouseph.
Two days later all three Men’s Singles
players won, a rare event in recent times.
Kidd, Ouseph and Andrew Smith all scored
in a 3-0 win over South Africa which
ensured a last eight place.
In between there was a 5-0 defeat to
Malaysia. “But everyone had a go and the
spirit was good,” said Wright. Ouseph,
whose win over Malaythong had been
important, came close to another success
before losing 21-18 15-21 21-16 to Kuan
Beng Hong.
UBER CUPS
But for the women there were tough
lessons. There was a disappointing 5-0
defeat to The Netherlands and a 3-2 loss
to Hong Kong, in which their opponents
conceded a walk-over in a dead second
doubles denying Jenny Wallwork, a
debutant the day before, valuable
experience. Wright spoke to the referee
about that.
This was followed by another setback,
losing 3-0 against Chinese Taipei, which
meant it was all over bar the analysis. In
eight attempts the women failed to achieve
a singles win, although, infuriatingly, they
played by no means badly.
“It was symptomatic of the whole week,”
Wright said. “Everyone played OK,
everyone’s fit and hitting well, but just
not taking opportunities when they
come along.
“It’s important not to be timid. You can’t
hesitate with this scoring system - it’s
brutal. Good players get away from you
very quickly.
“We have reached the stage where we
have to go back and question ourselves
harder. We take positives: they are training
well and are fit and playing well. They
have the right to win these matches.
“But at crucial moments they are not
strong enough and we have to look at that
and try to correct it. They are training too
hard to give up these chances.”
below ground as though lifting from
a hidden launch-pad.
There was no take-off for these
inexperienced players but Andrew Smith
did take a game off Lin Dan, the World
No.1, and they did go as far as a fullstrength squad would have been expected
to anyway.
Hopeful though this made England about
the future, final feelings were again tinged
with frustration.
Article Images:
The final act saw the men lose 3-0 to topseeded titleholders China in the futuristic
atmosphere of Tokyo’s famously
idiosyncratic spaceship-shaped
Metropolitan Gymnasium, half-wedged
Page 18 - Suzanne Rayappan & Jenny
Wallwork, Thomas Cup
Page 19 (clockwise from top left) - Uber Cup,
Nick Kidd and Rajiv Ouseph
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Contact Sue Sutton,
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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
UP THERE WITH THEM AND CHALLENGING!
My pledge to you, the membership, and my heart’s desire, is put us up there to
challenge those National Governing Bodies that are silently acknowledged as being
‘the best in the business’ - and we are doing it!
Recently, on behalf of BADMINTON England,
I received a certificate from Richard Caborn,
the Minister of Sport at the CCPR Annual
Conference, which confirms that we have
achieved the Foundation Level of the
Equality Framework for Sport. We stand
alongside the Football Association, Table
Tennis and Rowing (plus the two agencies of
Sport England and the Women’s Foundation
for Sport) so that means, we are one of only
four National Governing Bodies that have
managed to take this public step and openly
confirm that we do operate equably and
have satisfactorily evidenced this claim.
The assessment process for the submission
of the portfolios, which contained no fewer
than one 111 pieces of evidence, was
extremely rigorous. We must not
underestimate just how fantastic this
success actually is!
My thanks go to all of you that have sent
me feedback from consultation documents
over the past months and to the working
group set up to drive this – Malcolm Smith,
Derek Batchelor, Rhona Robbins, Eric
Brown, George Wood and Chris Colby. I hope
you can all share the moment with me! The
Action Plan for Year 2 and 3 is about to be
communicated – have a look and see how
you can help, influence and maybe be
responsible for some aspects too!
Some of the supporting evidence supplied
for the portfolio was around projects that
have been taking place over the past year.
Part of our core work is to drive up
participation and convert these new players
into club members and demonstrate that
badminton can truly be attractive to those
groups and communities who may not in
the past have felt able to have a go!
Winners all round!
No fewer than 818 new participants from
Black and Ethnic communities have taken
part in badminton since last September.
BADMINTON England has prioritised this
sector of the community within their
participation strategy and is seeking to
overcome some of the issues and barriers
faced by these communities, particularly
by women and girls, by setting up
programmes of opportunities aimed at
introducing badminton in a safe, friendly
and attractive way.
Projects have taken place in Hampshire,
Southampton and Portsmouth, in Sussex
at a school in Crawley, in sunny Taunton,
Birmingham and Bedford and in the London
Region targeting a Muslim Community and
another focusing on a Jewish Community.
The sessions at the St Mary’s Leisure
Centre, Southampton, led by a female
coach was set up because many of these
ladies did not feel comfortable exercising
in front of others. The ladies are mostly
over 35. The project celebrates a
partnership with the local Active Options
Co-ordinator based at the centre supported
by Sport England. The radio station Unity
101, which aims to bring together different
sections of the community has advertised
the project, so too have local newspapers.
The first twelve ladies have booked their
places and more are showing interest!
A weekly coaching cell is taking place in
Taunton for members of the Chinese
community. The twelve players are already
checking out player pathways no doubt with
an eye on Beijing! Internationally, China are
a real power in the world of badminton.
Of the projects staged in Birmingham
recently four hundred and six took part and
of these eighty five were women. More are
being planned.
If you want to get involved whether
coaching, administering or playing in any
of these exciting opportunities, contact
your local Regional Development Manager
or call the National Badminton Centre on
01908 268400 and to speak to the
Development Department.
A Vietnamese community based in
Portsmouth now has fifteen participants
playing regularly. This project was set up
by the local Vietnamese link worker in
partnership with the Portsmouth
Vietnamese Association Badminton Club.
INTER-COUNTIES TOURNAMENT
2006 UNDER 17 HARROD
INTER-COUNTIES TOURNAMENT
UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM, 10TH - 13TH APRIL 2006
By Daniel Wright
“Another great tournament, I wouldn’t miss it for the world!”
Phillip White, ICT official for the last sixteen years.
“Asian badminton came to England”
Yunus Suleman, ICT official for the first time.
“The noise, how could I forget the noise”
Paul Harper, Cumbria manager.
© Gavin Gray - actionphotography.co.uk
For those that don’t know, the InterCounties Tournament is probably the
biggest, and is certainly the most exciting
team tournament in Europe. Up to forty
counties from all over England, Ireland
and Wales take part, bringing together
over four hundred players and coaches.
It takes place over four days during the
Easter holidays at the University of
Nottingham, and all but a couple of local
counties stay on campus in the halls of
residence. By the end of the tournament
all the players are tired but the
atmosphere and team spirit is fantastic.
For county players, it is the highlight not
only of the junior badminton calendar but
also their junior career. Even international
players, who play all over Europe, often
look forward to the ICT more than any
other event. Last year Yorkshire extended
their record number of wins to thirteen
and in doing so extended their own record
to seven wins in a row. But could they win
it again?
The early signs certainly pointed towards
another victory as, even without Gabby
White who was selected for the Under 19
Six Nations, they steam-rolled their way
through their first six matches without
conceding a game! Elsewhere, the other
seeded teams won their respective groups
with relative ease.
Day two and matches were starting to get
closer, except for Yorkshire’s that is.
Despite not managing to beat any of the
teams in their second group, Lancashire
became the first team to take games off
the champions, only losing 7-3.
Hertfordshire had a potentially tricky
match with Ulster who were looking to
improve on last year’s fifth place.
However, Hertfordshire were too strong,
winning 9-1 with only Sam Magee winning
at second Boys Singles for Ulster.
Buckinghamshire completed the top four
just as they did last year.
Further down the draw is where some of
the most closely fought matches can be
seen as teams fight for every point in
an attempt to improve on their county’s
previous year’s position. Gloucestershire
took top spot in their group but not after
a scare from Berkshire. It was 4-4 with the
two mixed to play. Gloucestershire took
both with the first going to 21-19. Berkshire
managed to take second place from
Northumberland after taking the two Girls
Doubles with Vicki Primmer and Cassie
Hall securing the match with a 21-20 win
in the final game.
Devon were proving stronger than in
recent years and took top spot in their
group after beating Northamptonshire
6-4, with Dave Williams and Chris Hewitt
winning a close first Boys Doubles 21-17.
Group R saw the closest match of the
tournament, between Bedfordshire and
Derbyshire. Becky Lyons and Mary Wang
won the second Girls Doubles 21-16 for
Bedfordshire to make it 5-5, only for
Derbyshire to win by just two points.
So to the final, which was a repeat of
2005. Yorkshire and Hertfordshire looked
fairly evenly matched and the outcome
would almost certainly depend on how the
managers picked their respective teams.
Yorkshire raced into a 2-0 lead by taking
the two mixed. After the two Girls Singles
it was 3-1 to Yorkshire as expected, but
Kate Robertshaw (Yorkshire) did well to
take Laura Cousins to 21-19. The two Boys
Singles were next up with each team
taking one each. Marcus Ellis of Yorkshire
was too strong for Nigel Tao and James
Reynolds (Herts) continued his fine form
at second singles. The two Girls Doubles
were also halved with Yorkshire taking the
first and Hertfordshire the second. The
scores stood at 5-3 to Yorkshire going into
the two Boys Doubles. It looked as though
Yorkshire were going to take their eighth
title in a row and they duly secured this
when Jamie Bonsels and Richard Morris
beat Nigel Tao and Kamran Haq 21-13.
Victor Liew and James Reynolds managed
to win the second doubles to make it 6-4
to Yorkshire, as it was last year.
So congratulations to Yorkshire and to
everyone that played a part in this
fantastic event. Were Yorkshire the only
winners? Of course not, as the ICT is not
just about the top teams. Further down
the order the competition is just as fierce,
if not more so, as each team has their own
particular target. Whether that is to beat
last year’s performance, to achieve their
best ever placing or something else, it
inspires them to give their all and
encourage their team-mates in pursuit of
their common goal.
Will Yorkshire win it again next year?
There is only one way to find out. See you
in Nottingham between the 12th and 15th
April 2007!
© Gavin Gray - actionphotography.co.uk
Third and fourth place was between
Nottinghamshire and Buckinghamshire, just
as it was last year. Again it proved to be
incredibly close, literally going down right
to the wire. The match stood at 4-4 with
just the Girls Doubles to play. Alison Pulford
and Sam Reynolds of Nottinghamshire
managed to get the better of Karen Hird
and Jenny Crump at first doubles, winning
21-19. The second doubles proved to be
even closer with Theresa Oliver-Smith and
Penny Reynolds securing third place for
Nottinghamshire for the second year
running with a 21-20 victory over Natalie
Gilders and Alyssa Lim.
COMMONWEALTH GAMES,
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Men’s Singles
Chong Wei Lee (Malaysia) bt
Choong Hann Wong (Malaysia) 21-13 21-12
Bronze Medal Play-off:
Chetan Anand (India) bt
Aamir Ghaffar (England) 21-17 18-21 21-13
Women’s Singles:
Tracey Hallam (England) bt
Mew Choo Wong 21-12 21-15
Susan Hughes (Scotland) bt
Elizabeth Cann (Jersey) 21-5 13-21 21-19
Men’s Doubles:
Chong Ming Chan & Kien Keat Koo bt
Choong Hann Wong & Tan Fook Choong
(Malaysia) 21-13 21-14
Bronze Medal Play-Off:
Anthony Clark & Robert Blair (England) bt
Travis Denney & Ashley Brehaut (Australia)
21-6 21-14
Women’s Doubles:
Pei Tty Wong & Eei Hui Chin (Malaysia) bt
Yanmei Jiang & Yujia Li (Singapore)
21-17 21-19
Gail Emms & Donna Kellogg (England) bt
Trupti Murgunde & Saina Nehwal (India)
21-14 21-9
Mixed Doubles:
Nathan Robertson & Gail Emms (England)
bt Daniel Shirley & Sara Runesten-Petersen
(New Zealand) 21-17 21-10
Hendri Saputra & Yujia Li (Singapore)
bt Kien Keat Koo & Pei Tty Wong
(Malaysia) 21-14 21-23 21-6
Ian Wright, England Head Coach
The most outstanding of England’s several successes at the
Commonwealth Games was Tracey Hallam’s completion of a full
set of Women’s Singles medals by winning the Gold. Let’s hope
that by now she realises her gift.
HALLAM’S
GOLDEN MOMENT
By Richard Eaton,
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 14TH - 25TH MARCH 2006
If she does, she will have become an even
more dangerous player and there could
be another career-best moment ahead
for the 31-year-old who has seemed more
talented than she believes.
A full week after becoming the first
English woman since Fiona Smith in 1990
to become Commonwealth Champion, the
self-effacing Tracey seemed unsure about
whether it could really have happened.
To hear her talk, the podium top, the
national anthem in her honour, and the
medal supported by a lanyard of two gum
leaves, might have been fantasies
projected into the winter clouds from her
window in Burton-on-Trent. “I still can’t
believe it,” she said. “I keep wandering
around thinking how did I do it?”
It required Ian Wright to answer that
properly. “Because when it mattered she
was very strong mentally,” England’s Head
Coach said.
So unsure was Hallam of her ability to win
the title, for which she was favourite, that
she tried to persuade her parents not to
come to Australia to watch her. “I tried to
put them off because of the extra
pressure which that meant,” she admitted.
“It was naughty of me but I tried to talk
them out of going. They said they
wouldn’t because it was too far - but then
they changed their minds.”
It was her uncle who talked them into
going, and he may have done more than
help make it an unforgettable family
occasion. He may have helped Hallam
overcome another mental obstacle.
“They only decided to go at the last
moment, and now I’m glad that they
did,” she acknowledges. “I’m grateful
to my uncle.”
There were other pressures too, which
built up early on. These definitely worked
in her favour, for, having overcome them,
it settled her down.
In the second round, for instance, she
faced Kelly Morgan, the former
Commonwealth Champion from Wales,
who discouragingly had previously been
a difficult opponent. “That was the most
nervous I was about the whole event,”
Hallam said.
“People said I would be fine, and I just
couldn’t accept that. But it was only
twelve months since she had had a baby
and her movement was not the same.
Once I got past her I knew I would feel
more relaxed.”
It also helped Hallam that Li Li, the
Singaporean who beat her in the
Manchester final, lost to Aparna Popat,
the 1998 Silver Medallist from India. But
there were other hurdles to overcome.
One was Elizabeth Cann, Hallam’s
conqueror in the 2005 English Nationals
who was now representing Jersey. Victory
over her, Hallam said was “a weight off
my shoulders.”
Hence, although the final against Wong
Mew Choo might have felt an even bigger
burden, it somehow didn’t. Although the
second seed from Malaysia had won their
encounter in the team event, Hallam had
a different feeling about it.
“Compared with 2002 it was so different,”
she said. “In Manchester I was thinking,
‘oooh, this is the biggest day of my
badminton career’, and in Melbourne I was
so calm.”
At practice the day before the final, she
hadn’t seen the Malaysians at the hall.
“That really stuck in my head,” she said.
“I thought they would be sure to go down
there but she (Wong) wasn’t there. I think
I gained a bit of confidence from that.”
Hallam’s game was certainly flowing and
she felt able to play out the rallies rather
than go for the lines. She had studied the
video of their team event encounter,
which had been long and physical, and
she was very ready.
Hallam tried to bring her opponent in and
then put the shuttle behind her. “Late on
in the first set I cross-flicked it and she
didn’t move well at all,” said Hallam.
“I thought then I have got her here.
I thought ‘I’ve got her, I’ve got her.’
“Still I had to keep working and chasing.
In the second set, Yvette Yun Luo said to
keep it to the back. I remember thinking
as long as I kept working she would have
to do a lot. She tried to make winners she made errors.”
Hallam won 21-12 21-15. Even before her
racket had been put away there were
hugs from Yun Luo and Wright, and when
she reached her team mates, Jo Nicholas
draped a flag around her.
But during the closing ceremony Hallam
was still “trying to take it in that I was
Commonwealth Champion, and it was really
hard.” Let’s hope that it is no longer. >
No such problems for Nathan Robertson
and Gail Emms. Not only they, but almost
everyone, felt they should win the Mixed
Doubles. But this was still an important
success. It was a title they coveted, and
there was a memory to erase. Their
quarter-final defeat in Manchester had
been the surprise of the tournament.
“I can’t remember that ever happening
before,” Emms said, with a caustic tone.
“When you have to be in the hall at eight
in the morning and play your last match
in the evening, with warming up, warming
down, warming up, warming down all the
time in between, it’s not so much physical
as mental.”
This time there was another scare, as they
came within a handful of points of a semifinal defeat against the Singaporeans,
Saputra and Li, but they squeezed through
a hard, physical match 19-21 21-14 21-17.
So England had to settle for a bronze in
the Women’s Doubles, as they did in the
Men’s Doubles through Anthony Clark and
Robert Blair. The pair had felt it within
their capabilities to reach the final, but
the Malaysians proved exceptionally
strong, as they had been in the team
event too, in which England lost their title
and had to settle for silver. Nevertheless
England still hit their medal tally target,
and there was almost a bonus when
Aamir Ghaffar came close to a bronze in
the Men’s Singles.
“We won it on attitude,” Emms reckoned.
“We won purely because we said we are
not going to lose this. It wasn’t pretty
badminton: conditions weren’t made for
that. There was a lot of drift and we had
to battle through with an ‘I’m going to get
this,’ attitude.”
It was a less bumpy road in the final,
where they beat Daniel Shirley and Sarah
Runesten-Petersen, the World Bronze
Medallists from New Zealand, by 21-17
21-10. “We knew what standard they could
play to, and that we had to be extremely
strong,” said Robertson. “We were leading
from soon after the start, so we almost
played to our best then.”
This was a special satisfaction because
they had placed extra pressure on
themselves to atone for four years ago.
But other, external pressures were placed
on Emms, and much more frustratingly
the schedule required her to play an
exhausting four matches in a day, which
almost certainly prevented her and Donna
Kellogg from reaching the Women’s
Doubles final.
He lost 21-17 18-21 21-13 to India’s Chetan
Anand, slipping from 5-2 to 5-11 in a decider
which revealed how difficult it is to haul a
deficit back with 21-up scoring system once
it starts to get away from you.
But Ghaffar gained in experience. It was
his first major sports event, and far more
major than he or many others could have
realised. Capacity crowds of 80,000
packed the MCG on seven consecutive
nights, and 1.6 million tickets were sold,
worth almost £33 million – almost double
the amount sold in Manchester.
It helped ensure the Victorian state
government would be able to cover the
huge cost of staging the Games – around
£286 million – and enabled Australia’s
Sports Minister Rod Kemp to claim that
they had “lifted Melbourne and Australia
to new levels.”
It was easy to understand how Ghaffar,
and others, might have been affected by
the buzz. “I couldn’t sleep for two nights
before I played,” he admitted. There was
music, theatre, and arts, a place where
you could be tattooed with Karak, the
endangered red-and-black cockatoo which
was the Games’ mascot, and 60
volunteers at different locations providing
tear-away maps for passers-by. Ghaffar
may well have torn off a piece of the
psychological map necessary to chart his
further development.
Through it all, Wright believes, the squad
developed a sense of togetherness. This
may have been aided by the creation of
a captain’s role, filled by Anthony Clark,
who acted as a liaison for players and
management. It meant players being
treated as adults, making more of their
own decisions about times, meals,
and training.
“Peers’ decisions are always stronger than
management decisions,” said Wright.
Most players, apparently, got a decent
balance between enjoying and performing.
But this may be only a start. The plan is
that at the World Championships, in Madrid
in September, it will work even better.
Article images:
Page 24 - Main image, Tracy Hallam & inset,
Ian Wright
Page 27 (clockwise from left to right) - Lee Chong
Wei, closing ceremony, Chetan Anand, Anthony Clark
& Robert Blair, closing ceremony
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PLAYER PROFILE RACHEL HOWARD
Rachel Howard started playing badminton at 11 years of age at Abel
Smith JMI School in Hertford and is the current Ladies Singles,
England No.5. Rachel is now only 21 and is part of the U24 Squad,
represents Hertfordshire in Premier A and competes regularly on the
European Badminton Union (EBU) circuit. Her best results this season
have been reaching the semi-finals of the Ladies Doubles at the
Belgium Open and French Open.
Rachel talks to Badminton Magazine about her present lifestyle.
How did you get started playing badminton?
I was regularly playing tennis and swimming
at school but badminton quickly became my
priority. I joined Stanstead Abbotts Junior
Badminton Club, and it was here that I played
my first matches. I progressed to playing at
Hertfordshire University under the guidance
of Bill Goode, with the best players of all ages
in the County. At the age of 15 I was selected
to represent England, and I finished my junior
career by winning the Singles and Doubles
(with Mariana Agathangelou) at the U19
National Championships.
What about the current situation with
your education?
Although I am completely committed to my
badminton career, I want to have good
qualifications to fall back on after I finish
competing. Consequently, my badminton life
has to be balanced with my study for a BSc
(Hons) Psychology degree at the University
of Bath (2003 – 07). I commute to
Cambridge from Hertford five days each
week where I work as a research assistant at
the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit.
I also complete assignments set by my
university, and am currently collecting data
for my dissertation project. Furthermore,
I use all my leave (a total of 6 weeks) to
continue competing on the EBU Circuit.
So, how much time do you currently spend
training each week?
On Tuesday and Thursday mornings I get up
at 6.00am and drive an hour and a half to
the National Centre in Milton Keynes for an
8.30am session with Yvette Yun Luo (the
Ladies National Singles Coach) and the rest
of the Ladies Singles Squad. I leave by
10.30am to travel to Cambridge and reach
work at midday. I work through until 8.00pm
before driving an hour back home, reaching
Hertford at 9.00pm. On the other three days
of the week I try to combine an on-court
session with some physical training as well.
On Monday I work 8.30am until 4.30pm and
train with Nora Perry for three hours from
5.45pm. On a Wednesday and Friday I work
7.00am until 3.00pm (get up 5.15am!) and
then drive to Hatfield Sports Village to train
with Nick Goode for around an hour before
I go on to do either weights or
aerobic/anaerobic gym work. On a rare
weekend where I have no competitions, I try
to complete two physical sessions.
Anytime for a social life and boyfriend?
Whilst on work placement I have next to no
time to see friends but on rare weekends
off I like to catch up with my family and my
boyfriend Nathan Rice. He is a full-time
badminton player (current England No.5,
also sponsored by Ashaway) so we do get
to see each other at most tournaments!
How easy is it to combine studies with
playing badminton?
The key to achieving a high standard degree
whilst progressing in your badminton career
is to set clear goals and operate good time
management. All the travelling makes
training whilst being on placement a far
greater challenge than training whilst
studying at university. The advantage of
training at the High Performance Centre
(HPC) in Bath is that all my sporting and
academic resources are located on the
same site, and I am fortunate as Peter Bush
(the Bath HPC coach) works hard to
co-ordinate each players training around
their lecture timetables.
Any advice for other young players?
I believe that it is possible to combine
studying with a training program that will
take your badminton forward. I think it is
vital that players wishing to go to university
should apply to those located near to a
HPC. I also feel, after my experience so far
this year, that the suitability of a placement
year is questionable as I have found this is
far more demanding on your badminton
commitments than the standard three
year university course.
Do you see your future in singles
or doubles?
I currently train only for singles. I don’t have
a regular doubles partner at present but
I try to compete in both events whenever
possible. I am still undecided with regard
to my final choice of discipline.
What are your goals for the future?
I would very much like to train full time for
at least a few years. This would enable me
to judge what standard is realistically
possible for me to reach. Obviously my
dream is to win medals in major
championships like the Olympics, but
I motivate myself with goals that are more
obtainable in the medium term.
What are your thoughts on the transition
to senior badminton?
During this season I have seen that my game
is not a million miles from the top European
standard but I still have a way to go to
regularly win at this level and beyond.
The physical aspect of the game at senior
level is much greater and requires
commitment to training over a long period
of time.
In order to combine my play and study
I have needed huge support from Jens Grill
and Yvette Yun Luo at BADMINTON England,
my placement supervisor Tim Dalgleish, Bill
and Nick Goode, Peter Bush and Nora Perry
for their coaching, and my friends, boyfriend
and family. Thank you!
COACHING & INSTRUCTION
FIRST IMPRES
By George Wood, BADMINTON England Coaching Manager
Following on from the article in the previous Badminton Magazine, the obvious
next area to look at is returning the serve in doubles, says George Wood.
If you are receiving, the return of serve is
your first chance to make an impression
on the rally, and as the saying goes “first
impressions count”! You need to make
sure that your return of serve delivers the
maximum impact on your opponents and
gives you the best chance of winning the
rally. There are a multitude of different
places that you can hit the shuttle
towards when you play, too many for this
short article, but there are several key
principles that you should keep in mind
that will help you to maximise the
effectiveness of your return.
Get it in
Attack
This may seem to be stating the obvious
but how many times do you go through
a match without hitting at least one return
of serve out or into the net. It is often
when the game gets tight and you start
planning exactly where you want to hit the
shuttle to put your opponent in trouble
that you can forget the most basic rule of
all and therefore gift your opponent easy
points. You must make it as hard as
possible for your opponent to win a point,
and this means getting the shuttle in!
It is almost always easier to win a rally
when you are attacking. The laws of
service mean that unless your opponent
is 7 foot tall, he will have to be hitting the
shuttle upwards to you from his serve.
This means that you should be able to hit
down as the shuttle will almost certainly
be travelling upwards as it crosses the net
towards you. Even if you can’t attack the
shuttle enough to hit it down hard, you
could play a net shot or a block, taking the
shuttle as early as possible. If this is played
SIONS COUNT
well you can step-in and take control of the
net, meaning that your opponent will have
to hit upwards and you or your partner can
hit the next shot down.
Win the mind games
Serving is one of the shots that can be
impacted by nerves or pressure because
you have a long time to think about it
and in theory it should be easy. To make
serving as difficult as possible for your
opponent you need to try to increase their
nervousness. This could be achieved by:
●
●
Standing as far forward in the service
box as possible.
Taking up an aggressive stance looking
like you are ready to attack the serve.
●
Making every effort to attack the serve
early in the match.
Put it in your opponent’s mind that it is
difficult to serve to you and they have to
serve very well to stop you attacking it.
This will make them try to serve tighter
to the net and when the pressure builds
this could make them serve into the net.
Think about the next shot
If you play a return of serve, you want to
make it as difficult as possible for your
opponent to return. You also want to try
to limit their possible replies. Think about
what their likely replies will be and then
get into position to be able to attack that
reply. For example, if you return to the
net, make sure that you step-in and do not
give your opponent the chance to play a
net reply. If he does play a net reply make
sure that you are in a position to kill it.
Similarly, if you hit down towards the
back of the court make sure that you
position yourself at the net in the best
position to cover the most probable
replies. For example if you have hit down
to the rear player’s backhand and he is
taking it from behind himself, he will
probably only be able to hit the shuttle
straight so advance towards the net to
cover his straight return.
After each rally have a quick think as to
whether your return met these principles.
If it did you will probably be serving for
the next rally!
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INTERNATIONAL ROUND UP
PORTUGUESE INTERNATIONAL
Liza Parker and Jenny Day of England were
victorious in the Portuguese International
Ladies Doubles when they beat Denmark’s
Marie Ropke and Line Kruse 21-13 21-9.
Hayley Connor and Heather Olver, and
Caroline Smith and Rachel Howard reached
the second round. In the Mixed Doubles
Robert Adcock and Hayley Connor, and
Matthew Honey and Heather Olver went out
in the second round whilst Chris Langridge
and Jenny Day, and Chris Tonks and Liza
Parker were defeated in the quarter-finals.
England’s Nathan Rice and Rajiv Ouseph lost
out in the quarter-final and semi-final
respectively of the Men’s Singles to eventual
winner Michael Christensen of Denmark,
whilst Nick Kidd went out in the semi-finals to
finalist Arif Rasidi of France 21-18 19-21 21-12.
Robin Middleton and Robert Adcock lost in
the second round of the Men’s Doubles 12-21
21-16 21-15 to Jose Antonio Crespo and
Nicholas Escartin Ara of Spain, whilst
Matthew Honey and Edward Foster lost to
compatriots Chris Tonks and Chris Langridge
21-15 21-15 in the quarter-finals. Tonks and
Langridge then went on to lose in the semifinal 21-18 21-18 to Rasmus Bonde and Kasper
Henriksson of Denmark.
In the Women’s Singles Julia Mann and Jill
Pittard both reached the quarter-final before
losing out to Bing Xin Xu of Spain and
Camilla Soerensen of Denmark respectively.
Men's Singles:
Michael Christensen (DEN) bt Arif Rasidi
(FRA) 21-9, 21-11
Women's Singles:
Yuan Wemyss (SCO) bt Anna Rice (CAN)
21-9 ret.
Men's Doubles:
Anders Kristiansen & Simon Mollyhus (DEN)
bt Rasmus Bonde & Kasper Henriksson
(DEN) 16-21, 21-15, 21-18
Women's Doubles:
Joachim Andersson and Yi Zhang 19-21 21-11
21-19 whilst Ian Palethorpe and Natalie Munt
lost in the second round of the Mixed
Doubles to Joans Rasmussen and Britta
Andersson of Denmark. Kristian Roebuck
and Jenny Wallwork lost in the semi-finals
to Rasmus Bonde and Christina Pederson
also of Denmark.
Men's Doubles:
Men's Singles:
Women's Doubles:
Joachim Persson (DEN) bt Kasper Oedum
(DEN) 13-21, 21-17, 21-17
Johanna Persson & Elin Bergblom (SWE) bt
Brigit Overzier & Carina Mette (GER)
21-19, 21-13
Women's Singles:
Petra Overzier (GER) bt Sara Persson (SWE)
24-22, 21-15
Men's Doubles:
Jonas Rasmussen & Peter Steffensen (DEN) bt
Joachim Andersson (SWE) & Yi Zhang (CHN)
Women's Doubles:
Ekaternia Ananina & Anastasia Russkikh
(RUS) bt Emelie Lennartsson & Sophia
Hansson (SWE) 21-14, 21-12
Mixed Doubles:
Jonas Rasmussen & Britta Andersson (DEN)
bt Rasmus Bonde & Christina Pederson
(DEN) 21-11, 21-15
DUTCH OPEN
England’s Jill Pittard reached the quarterfinals of the Dutch Open Ladies Singles
before losing out to eventual finalist Juliane
Schenk 21-13 21-11.
Men's Singles:
Bjoern Joppien (GER) bt Andrew Smith
(ENG) 21-19, 21-15
Women's Singles:
Petra Overzier (GER) bt Juliane Schenk
(GER) 18-21, 21-19, 21-18
Men's Doubles:
Ingo Kindervater & Kristof Hopp (GER) bt
Michael Fuchs & Roman Spitko (GER)
21-10, 21-11
Women's Doubles:
Women's Singles:
Tine Rasmussen (SWE) bt Petra Overzier
(GER) 21-19, 21-9
Anders Kristiansen & Simon Mollyhus (DEN)
bt David Lindley & Robert Adcock (ENG)
19-21, 21-17, 21-13
Mixed Doubles:
Imam Sodikin Irawan (PFQ) & Cynthia
Tuwankotta (SUI) bt Jacob Chemnitz & Julie
Houmann (DEN) 17-21, 23-21, 21-18
CROATIAN OPEN
In the Croatian Open, England took four out
of five victories with all England affairs in
both the Men’s and Mixed Doubles finals.
There were two titles for Chris Langridge
and Jenny Day who won the Mixed
Doubles together and Men’s and Women’s
Doubles respectively.
In a very close final between the two English
Men’s Doubles pair, Langridge and his
partner Chris Tonks just edged out Kristian
Roebuck and Ian Palethorpe in a tight three
set match 23-21 15-21 22-20.
Langridge partnered Jenny Day to out play
the Scottish International Champions Jenny
Wallwork and Kristian Roebuck, and in the
Women’s Doubles the unseeded pair of
Jenny Day and Liza Parker knocked out the
No.2 seeds in the quarter-finals before going
on to win the title.
In the Men’s Singles Andrew Smith went
against the top seed in the final and in a
nail-biting match finally won the title 21-19
in the third set.
Men's Singles:
Andrew Smith (ENG) Andrew Dabeka (CAN)
21-7 22-24 21-19
Juliane Schenk & Nicole Grether (GER) bt
Kamilla Rytter & Lena Frier Kristiansen
(DEN) 21-18, 21-12
Women's Singles:
Liza Parker & Jenny Day (ENG) bt Marie
Ropke & Line Kruse (DEN) 21-13, 21-9
Mixed Doubles:
Mixed Doubles:
Men's Doubles:
Rasmus Mangor Anderson & Mie Schjott
Kristensen (DEN) bt Rasmus Bonde &
Christina Pederson (DEN) 21-13, 14-21, 21-18
Kristof Hopp & Birgit Overzier (GER) bt
Wouter Claes (BEL) & Paulien Van
Dooremalen (DEN) 21-18, 21-18
Chris Tonks & Chris Langridge (ENG) bt
Ian Palethorpe & Kristian Roebuck (ENG)
23-21, 15-21, 22-20
FINNISH INTERNATIONAL
SWEDISH INTERNATIONAL
Women's Doubles:
England’s Andrew Smith lost to finalist
Kasper Oedum 21-17 17-21 21-12 in the semifinal of the Finnish International Men’s
Singles, whilst compatriot Jill Pittard lost out
to Bulgarian Petya Nedeitcheva 21-18 21-11 in
the quarter-finals of the Women’s Singles.
Andrew Smith of England reached the
quarter-finals of the Men’s Singles before
losing out to finalist and eventual winner
Joachim Persson of Denmark 15-21 16-21.
Liza Parker & Jenny Day (ENG) bt
Malgorzata Kurdelska & Paulina
Matusewwicz (POL) 21-17, 22-20
Men’s Doubles partners Kristian Roebuck
and Ian Palethorpe lost to eventual finalists
Men's Singles:
Joachim Persson (DEN) bt Przemyslaw
Wacha (POL) 17-21, 22-20, 21-19
Petya Nedeltcheva (BUL) bt Kati Tolmoff
(EST) 21-14, 21-18
Mixed Doubles:
Chris Langridge & Jenny Day (ENG) bt
Kristian Roebuck & Jenny Wallwork (ENG)
21-18, 24-22
POSTBAG
Please write in with your comments or news of your events to:
Rachel Pullan, Editorial Manager, Badminton Magazine, c/o
iSPORTmarketing, 188 Warwick Road, Kenilworth, Warwickshire,
CV8 1HU or email: rachel.pullan@isportmarketing.com
CHADACRE ON THE MOVE
On Thursday 4th May Chadacre
Badminton Club moved to Wilson’s School,
Wallington after nearly seventeen years at
Epsom College, Surrey.
Sandwiched between the Queen Elizabeth
II’s maiden voyage and the first moon
landing by Armstrong and Aldrin,
Chadacre Badminton Club was founded
at the “Cricketers” in Epsom on the
3rd June 1969!!
Comprising twenty five members drawn
mainly from three evening classes,
Chadacre’s first home was at the TA Hall
at Ewell. Annual subs were £7 10s (£7.50)
and one team was entered in the Surrey
League. (The club currently runs eleven
teams in the Surrey and Sutton Leagues).
There was a strong emphasis on a mixture
of competitive and social badminton
underpinned by a varied programme of
social functions.
With badminton no longer enjoying the
popularity of the 70’s and 80’s, the Club
has always been alert to the dangers of
complacency and after twenty years at the
TA Hall moved to Epsom College with its
brand new facilities in October 1989.
To encourage the development of a strong
club identity, Chadacre has always resisted
introducing more than one club night and
this has proved remarkably successful
both at a social and competitive level.
Whilst many other clubs have folded
through lack of numbers, until fairly
recently Chadacre was able to top the fifty
membership mark.
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE JUNIOR BADMINTON
History was in the making when the
Buckinghamshire Schools U13 County
badminton team won the National Team
Challenge title last weekend. This is the
first time a Buckinghamshire County team
has won a National title at any age group
including Adults and Vets.
The finals, held at Stopsley Leisure Centre,
consisted of twelve teams who had either
won or were runners-up in the six regional
heats. Buckinghamshire’s opening round
saw them play Suffolk and then Dorset
winning each 6-0. They then beat
Middlesex and Nottinghamshire 5-1 with
the closest match being against Cheshire
where the score was 4-2. Moving into the
final rounds they met Yorkshire and won
4-2 and in the final match they beat
Hampshire, again winning 4-2 for the
Championships with Nottinghamshire
runners-up and Hampshire 3rd.
The quality of play, fitness and focus on
the job in hand were the reasons for this
success, along with a lot of noisy support!
Lexi Gilders (Royal Latin), Sophie Sankey
(Summerfield combined) and Jamie
Kilgariff (Wycombe) were unbeaten
throughout the tournament with Tom
Stanford (Ousedale) playing at No.1,
beating players ranked higher than
himself. Ollie Digby, Phillip Wilkinson and
Andrew Robinson (Wycombe) all played
well, fighting for every last point, whilst
newcomers to this standard Jess Wilkins
(Royal Latin) and Lucy Mason (Linlade
Middle School) won three of their games
with excellent movement about court and
general enthusiasm, concluding a great
result and putting the County very much
on the badminton map.
The third move in Chadacre’s thirty-six
year history will enable the club to
strengthen its membership and attract
younger members from the school and
surrounding area. Chadacre will become
a key element of Wilson’s School,
becoming the sixth school in the country
to be awarded Badminton Academy Status
by BADMINTON England. As a result of
this Chadacre will help develop and
benefit from the already strong Junior
coaching structure in place ranging from
Under 12 – Under 19. Chadacre will also
enjoy the excellent facilities comprising
four courts with sprung wooden floors,
under-floor heating and appropriate
lighting/background.
If this latest phase in the Club’s history
is as successful as the previous two then
members can look forward to many more
years of enjoyable badminton with
Chadacre firmly established as one of the
top clubs in Surrey.
Anybody interested in playing at Chadacre
should contact Barry Atkins on Tel: 01737
360862
POSTBAG
CONTINUED
FAREWELL TO A
BADMINTON PIONEER
by Tom Marrs
The following letter was received subsequent
to the obituary written by Tom Marrs in
honour of Peter Birtwistle in the March
2006 edition of Badminton Magazine.
Badminton Magazine, March 2006,
arrived this morning and you have done
Peter proud.
Your eulogy is exceptional and captures
the man splendidly, especially the
closing five sentences. As you have so
well identified, so many things we take
for granted these days owe their
appearance on the badminton scene to
Peter who dragged our game (despite
powerful contrary views) in to the
modern sports age.
Well done Tom – I am sure all in
Lancashire and particularly his family
will be pleased and proud.
Kind Regards
Mike Hyde
Liverpool
It’s been two years now since a team of
four (Aram Dedeyan, Andrew McGill, Steve
Abbott and Bob Pearson) set-out to make
badminton more exciting in
Northumberland. The approach was
simple: players from any standard must
have a competitive environment they can
enjoy and thrive in.
So after four months of preparation,
in October 2004 the Northumberland
Grading and Ranking System was born.
Based mostly on the French grading
system, the county graded all the players
in Northumberland and started offering
tournaments for each grade. Every win
brings players points depending on the
grade of the opposition. All the results
from the County tournaments, as well as
the Northumberland league can be viewed
on their new website. Players can see how
they are progressing and this brings an
extra incentive for them to improve
themselves as they can now measure
their performance.
We have introduced eight new graded
tournaments catering for players from
beginner to county standard. And thanks
to this, the number of players now playing
competitively has increased three fold!
To find out more, visit
www.northumberlandbadminton.org and
click on Grading System, or write to
aram@northumberlandbadminton.org
NEW RUNNINGSPORTS RESOURCES
TO BOOST GRASSROOTS
IAN YOUNG – 50TH SEASON AS
CLUB SECRETARY
There was a surprise presentation to Ian
Young, one of the stalwarts of local
badminton, at the finals of the 43rd
Ipswich and District Badminton League
Championships, held recently at the
town’s Northgate Sports Centre. The
President of BADMINTON England, John
Havers, presented the English Badminton
Award in recognition of Ian’s long-standing
service to the sport.
Ian is a founder member of the Corinthians
club who are celebrating their 50th season
and has been their Secretary throughout
this period. He is well known to local
players for his enthusiasm and
commitment in his role as League
Secretary, a position he has held for thirtyfour years. Also in attendance was Tony
Bristow, President of the Suffolk Badminton
Association and other officials representing
county and league badminton.
free resources including top tips, best
practice guides, volunteer case studies
and frequently asked questions.
NORTHUMBERLAND SPICE UP
BADMINTON BY INTRODUCING A
‘FRENCH STYLE’ GRADING SYSTEM!
Sport England have launched
runningsports, its new portfolio of training
and support resources for volunteers.
runningsports is designed to support
volunteers involved in team, club or
community group administration and
management, and will play a key role in the
drive to develop skills across the sector.
The portfolio was launched in Westminster
at the meeting of Sports Strategic
Partnership for Volunteers, a sector-wide
group developed by Sport England as part
of its drive to support and develop sport’s
5.8 million volunteers.
The runningsports resources will support
a host of clubs and community sports
organisations nationwide, as well as the
National Governing Bodies of sport. The
portfolio, developed in consultation with
a range of sports professionals and
volunteer agencies, comprises:
●
www.runningsports.org - a new website,
launched on 25th April, containing
●
Quick Guides and ‘how to’ suggestions –
across a range of topics.
●
Workbooks - providing detailed advice
to volunteers on handling a range of
issues their sports team, club or
community organisation might face.
●
Workshops led by accredited tutors
across different sports and issues.
For further information please refer in the
first instance to www.runningsports.org or
contact runningsports on
info@runningsports.org
CHELTENHAM BADMINTON CLUB
CELEBRATE 50TH ANNIVERSARY
Club Chairmen down the years. From left to right: Neil
Morgan (current Chairman), Derek Saunders (current
President), Richard Giles and Peter Taylor.
As part of its 50th Anniversary,
Cheltenham Badminton Club recently held
a social evening with skittles. Former
members were tracked down and invited
to join current players in celebrating the
milestone. “As a relative newcomer to the
club (six years) it was great to meet people
who have been associated with the club
since its creation in the modern era fifty
years ago”, said Neil Morgan, Club
Chairman. There was much reminiscing by
one and all and the skittles was fiercely
contested. All in all the evening was a real
success, to the point where it was
suggested that it should become a regular
event. Certain memorabilia was available
on the night including club tournament
trophies and even the minutes of
committee meetings dating back to the
sixties, which made interesting reading.
The club unlike many others, is growing
slowly and as a result, aims to enter more
teams in the Gloucestershire Leagues
next season.
If you require any further information,
please do not hesitate to contact Neil
Morgan on Tel: 01242 519914 (daytime),
Tel: 01242 526887 (evening)
Neil Morgan
Club Chairman
Cheltenham Badminton Club
TOURNAMENT ROUND UP
CHEUNG RETAINS YONEX ENGLISH
UNDER 19 TITLE
Michelle Cheung retained her Yonex
English National Under 19 title at
Milton Keynes in the Yonex English
Under 19 Championships.
The nearest thing to a shock came in the
Mixed Doubles where third seeds Dean
George and Mariana Agathangelou beat
favourites Tom Dunlop and Jenny
Wallwork in straight games.
It gave the winners two titles each as
George had won the Men's Doubles with
Andrew Ellis while the Jersey girl had
taken the Women's Doubles with
Wallwork, who also won the title last year
with Heather Olver.
Yorkshire's Andrew Ellis also did the
double, having already won the Men's
Singles on a finals day when all titles
were won in straight games.
Cheung, still only 16, was too strong for
second seed Sarah Walker of Essex in the
Women's Singles, winning 11-3 11-4 as
some of the players who will be in
contention for London 2012 left their
stamp on the tournament.
Men's Singles:
Andrew Ellis (Yorks) bt
Ben Beckman (Surrey) 15-3, 15-4
Women's Singles:
Michelle Cheung (Bucks) bt
Sarah Walker (Essex) 11-3, 11-4
no one county dominated and each age
group was won by a different County for
the first time.
Over 40 group winners: Yorkshire
Over 45 group winners: Surrey
7 Points
3. Hampshire
4 Points
4. Devon
0 Points
Over 60 group winners: Kent
U19 SIX NATIONS
Over 65 group winners: Nottinghamshire
The U19 Six Nations took place at the
National Badminton Centre, Milton
Keynes. England’s Michelle Cheung was
victorious in the Women’s Singles final,
defeating Denmark’s Karine Joergensen
11-3 1-11 11-7, together with Dean George
and Mariana Agathangelou who
overcame Richard Eidestedt and Emma
Wengberg of Sweden 15-6 15-10 in the
Mixed Doubles final.
YONEX INTER COUNTY VETERANS
LEAGUE FINALS
The Finals of the Yonex Inter-County
League were played at the Hertfordshire
Sports Village with the competing teams
having successfully topped their respective
leagues for the 2005/06 season.
OVER 40
Yorkshire beat Hertfordshire 9-3
OVER 45
Surrey beat Lancashire 7-5
OVER 50
Lancashire beat Essex 6-6 (292-286
on points countback)
OVER 55
Staffordshire beat Lancashire 8-4
OVER 60
Kent beat Lancashire 7-5
OVER 65
Cumbria beat Nottinghamshire 5-4
Andrew Ellis (Yorks) & Dean George
(Herts) bt Chris Adcock & Peter Mills
(both Notts) 15-1, 15-8
Hertfordshire are the new ICC 17-21
winners after an exciting finals day at the
Babington Community College, Leicester.
Women's Doubles:
The four finalists, Devon, Hampshire,
Hertfordshire and Staffordshire played
a round robin with each tie consisting
of a Men’s and Women’s Singles and
Doubles, and two Mixed Doubles.
Dean George (Herts) & Mariana
Agathangelou (Jersey) bt Tom Dunlop
(Lancs) & Jenny Wallwork (Yorks)
15-7, 15-7.
9 Points
2. Staffordshire
Over 55 group winners: Essex
Men's Doubles:
Mixed Doubles:
1. Hertfordshire
Over 50 group winners: Lancashire
THE 17-21 INTER-COUNTY
CHAMPIONSHIPS 2005-06
Mariana Agathangelou (Jersey) &
Jennifer Wallwork (Yorks) bt Elizabeth
Brett (Staffs) & Jessica White (Yorks)
15-12, 15-6
The final league table for ICC 17-21:
Hertfordshire took the title from last
years winners Hampshire, after winning all
three rounds. This is the second time that
Hertfordshire have taken the title since
the Championships began in 2001.
Results:
YEHLEX VETERANS ICC FINALS
Devon 0 - Hampshire 6
The Yehlex Veterans Inter-County
Championships Finals 2005/06 took place
at the Hertfordshire Sports Village,
Hatfield. Some fantastic badminton was
played over the weekend in the six age
groups. Unusually, after the success of
Lancashire and Essex in previous years,
Devon 0 - Hertfordshire 6
Andrew Ellis lost narrowly 5-15 15-13 15-7
to Gabriel Ulldahl in the semi-final of the
Men’s Singles whilst Tom Dunlop and
Ben Beckman both reached the quarterfinals stages.
Chris Adcock and Peter Mills, Elizabeth
Brett and Jessica White, Chris Adcock
and Elizabeth Brett and Peter Mills and
Jessica White reached the quarter-finals
of the Men’s Doubles, Ladies Doubles and
Mixed Doubles respectively.
Men's Singles:
Jan O Joergensen (DEN) bt
Gabriel Ulldahl (SWE) 15-4, 15-3
Women's Singles:
Michelle Cheung (ENG) bt
Karine Joergensen (DEN) 11-3, 1-11, 11-7
Men's Doubles:
Mads Conrad & Mads Kolding (DEN) bt
Jan O Joergensen & Morten Spurr (DEN)
15-5, 15-3
Women's Doubles:
Line Kruse & Marie Roepe (DEN) bt
Mariana Agathangelou & Jenny Wallwork
(ENG) 15-8, 15-9
Mixed Doubles:
Dean George & Mariana Agathangelou
(ENG) bt Richard Eidestedt & Emma
Wengberg (SWE) 15-6, 15-10
Devon 0 - Staffordshire 6
Hampshire 2 - Hertfordshire 4
Hampshire 1 - Staffordshire 5
Hertfordshire 4 - Staffordshire 2
Contact Darren Parks,
Events Manager on
01908 268400
darrenparks@badmintonengland.co.uk
COUNTY ROUND-UP
YORKSHIRE WIN SIXTH TITLE IN SEVEN YEARS
The 2005/2006 season drew to a climatic finish on the 8th and 9th April with
Yorkshire maintaining their strong lead over Warwickshire to achieve their sixth
Championship title in seven years. It is an amazing statistic that since the start of
the Premiership in 1996/1997 they have never been out of the top two.
Warwickshire, last season’s Champions, kept the pressure on throughout the season
but the task was just too great on the final day.
At the other end of the table Hampshire led
a determined assault to snatch safety by
three points from Gloucestershire and four
from Lancashire in a three way relegation
dogfight. All three counties have a lot of
pride but it was Hampshire who found the
motivation and skill to win another summer
to rebuild and start next year’s campaign in
the top flight.
The opening round of the final Premier A
weekend at the National Badminton Centre,
Milton Keynes, started with a crucial tie for
both teams - Lancashire taking on
Warwickshire, the former desperate to avoid
the drop and the latter still dreaming of
retaining their Championship. Colin
Haughton and Alan Clarkson, who must
be as strong a Men’s Singles line up ever
fielded in the Championships, set Lancashire
off with a 2-0 start. But Lancashire were not
to win another point as Warwickshire swept
them away 8-2. If Haughton and Clarkson
are possibly the best Men’s Singles players
for a County in the Premiership then
Warwickshire’s seven times National
Champion Julia Mann and 2006 Nationals
runner-up Jill Pittard must be as strong
a pair of Women’s Singles.
A good start for Warwickshire then, who
knew that they must make some inroads
into Yorkshire’s 9 point lead before facing
them on the final morning. If the gap
could be cut back to five points then an
8-2 win over Yorkshire would take the title.
Yorkshire were remorseless however and
eased to an 8-2 win over Avon to keep the
same 9 point lead going into the
afternoon round.
In the afternoon Warwickshire were facing
relegation haunted Gloucestershire and had
high hopes of closing the gap through a 9-1
win and indeed the gap did close but only
by one solitary point as Yorkshire disposed
of Surrey 8-2.
Warwickshire therefore faced Yorkshire
for the title on Sunday morning with
a mountain to climb. Only a 10-0 win
could prevent Yorkshire from wrestling
the famous old Claughton, Chester
Grosevenor and Wallasey Cup back.
Nobody thought this was seriously
possible, but if Warwickshire could take
a few early matches could they put a scare
into Yorkshire? Stephen Foster ended any
such speculation beating Chris Dakin in
the second Men’s Singles to secure the
title. Warwickshire did not give up
however and Chris Roe and Catherine
Grant won the final Mixed Doubles to
halve the tie 5-5.
On Saturday Hampshire consigned
Gloucestershire to deep waters with an
8-2 win before losing by the same margin
to Avon. The large defeats detailed
above for Gloucestershire and Lancashire
to the title chasing teams meant
Hampshire had some breathing space with
a four point gap to Gloucestershire and
Lancashire (on 24 points) going into the
final ties.
Gloucestershire, who endured a terrible final
weekend despite the determined leadership
of Mike Heywood and Rebecca Pantaney,
were relegated by their 8-2 defeat to Essex.
This left the final relegation spot between
Lancashire and Hampshire - Lancashire
needing to win 8-2 to stay up. An epic battle
finished all square at 5-5, relegating proud
Lancashire for the first time to Premier B.
Joining Premier A next season will be
Glasgow and North Strathclyde who won
Premier B on 66 points with Leicestershire
in second place on 56 points. A fantastic
final weekend for Leicestershire guided
‘Rommel’ like by Colin Kent who confessed
to having his finger on the pulse in the
chaos of the final weekend. He knew just
what Leicestershire needed to do to move
from a relegation threatened fifth place to
promotion glory with a 6-4 win over
Cheshire, 7-3 over Dorset and a final 10-0
crushing of depleted Avon 2.
To view the final league tables click onto the
ICC pages on the BADMINTON England
website and follow the links from there.
NATIONAL RANKINGS
NATIONALRANKINGS 2006
1
2
MENS Nicholas
Andrew
SMITH
SINGLES KIDD
06
Avon
Hampshire
World No 44
World No 30
4
Nathan
5
Rajiv
GHAFFAR
RICE
OUSEPH
World No 43
World No 77
World No 95
3
Aamir
Middlesex
Buckinghamshire
1
MENS Anthony
DOUBLES CLARK
Nottinghamshire
Middlesex
2
Robert
Leicestershire
BLAIR
Clark & Blair
World No 10
Blair & Clark
World No 10
3
Kristian
4
David
5
Chris
ROEBUCK
LINDLEY
LANGRIDGE
Roebuck & Palethorpe
World No 37
Lindley & Archer
World No 47
Langridge & Tonks
World No 38
1
MENS
MIXEDDOUBLES Nathan
2
Anthony
Derbyshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Surrey
Nottinghamshire
ROBERTSON
CLARK
Robertson & Emms
World No 2
Clark & Kellogg
World No 7
3
Robert
4
Kristian
5
David
BLAIR
ROEBUCK
LINDLEY
Blair & Munt
World No 11
Roebuck & Wallwork
World No 20
Lindley & Rayappan
World No 27
Leicestershire
Derbyshire
Nottinghamshire
For the latest rankings visit www.badmintonengland.co.uk
ENJOY OUR SHOES
NATIONALRANKINGS 2006
1
2
WOMENS Tracey
Elizabeth
CANN
SINGLES HALLAM
06
Staffordshire
3
Jill
Warkwickshire
Jersey
World No 9
World No 49
4
Julia
5
Rachel
Warkwickshire
Hertfordshire
PITTARD
MANN
HOWARD
World No 55
World No 48
World No 124
WOMENS 1=
Gail
DOUBLES
Hertfordshire
1=
Donna
Derbyshire
EMMS
KELLOGG
Emms & Kellogg
World No 4
Kellogg & Emms
World No 4
3
Joanne
4
Ella
NICHOLAS
TRIPP
PARKER
Nicholas & Tripp
World No 19
Tripp & Nicholas
World No 19
Parker & Rayappan
World No 49
Lancashire
1
WOMENS
MIXEDDOUBLES Gail
Cheshire
Hertfordshire
5
Liza
Hertfordshire
2
Donna
Derbyshire
EMMS
KELLOGG
Emms & Robertson
World No 2
Kellogg & Clark
World No 7
3
Natalie
4
Jenny
MUNT
WALLWORK
RAYAPPAN
Munt & Blair
World No 11
Wallwork & Roebuck
World No 20
Rayappan & Lindley
World No 27
Hertfordshire
Yorkshire
5
Suzanne
Hertfordshire
For the latest rankings visit www.badmintonengland.co.uk
ENJOY OUR SHOES
NATHAN VERSES TIGER…
WHO’S FASTEST
By Bob Wood, Chartered Physiotherapist Consultant to BADMINTON England
Elite badminton is fast….real fast. Racket and shuttle technology, improved court
surfaces and the simple fact that the players now have incredible athletic ability
have seen to this. So how fast is it compared to other sports? Consider this…
Andy Roddick’s tennis serve can just top 150mph
A Ferrari formula one car can hit 200 mph but it takes at least
13 seconds
Pelota balls (the traditional Spanish ball game) can nudge 200mph
But badminton has got all these beaten with shuttlecocks being
clocked at 206 mph.
So is it the fastest sport in the world?
Let’s take a look at the most highly paid sportsman in the
world, Tiger Woods.
In competitive play Tiger’s ball will fly off his driver at 180mph,
so Nathan has got him licked there. For fun Tiger can drag out
a two inch longer driver and match Nathan’s pace, and the ‘long
drive’ specialist top guys will make an incredible 220mph. For
me that’s fast but no cigar, it’s too specialist. I am going to
make the claim that badminton is the fastest sport in the world.
The saying goes ‘speed is of the essence’, and it is certainly one
of the most essential components of athletic training for
badminton. If the shuttle speed is impressive, then the elite
players ‘body speed’ is even more so.
●
You have to get there or the game’s over. Back court aerial,
low recovery at the foot of the net, or scrambling mid-court
you need to deliver your body and racket to the shuttle.
Explosive short distance speed and dynamic flexibility at pace
are essential.
●
Once you’re there you’ve got a job to do. Re-directing a
shuttle with precision, tactical finesse, or just raw power, with
infinite variation is difficult. No point in arriving out of
control, out of balance or out of puff! You need to be in
perfect body shape and balance, relaxed and reactive, your
shot selection needs to have been made, and you need to
have done all this in literally an instant. Fast minds as well as
fast bodies.
●
Now you’ve got to get out of there quick. Your body and it’s
momentum may have been stretched to it’s limit to make the
shot, but that’s tough, because it’s likely to be needed some
place else on the court in the next 2 seconds. You need to
recover body shape and court position, you need to be on the
move ready to go again, and you need to be watching your
opponent and the shuttle as you do this, and you might only
have about 1.2 seconds to work with….I’m thinking you are
going to need to be very quick.
So when we are training elite badminton players, one of our key
criteria is to train total body speed. Be it plyometrics, power
training, fast feet drills, agility drills, it’s all contributing to both
producing and controlling speed.
Badminton players at all levels should ‘feel the need for speed’.
Club players, and even beginners should become familiar with
basic speed and agility drills and practice and challenge their
ability with them. Keep it safe, build it up slowly, don’t go diving
in to high level plyometrics, maybe start with some simple speed
lunges or skipping routines, and get some advice from a
qualified coach.
My favourite training maxim is that all the best athletes can ‘get
there and come back’, and in the case of badminton players they
can do this as fast, if not faster, than any other sport.
5MINUTEBREAK
WHY WRE’E ALL
CEVELR CGLOS
No, we haven’t gone completely crazy but
are amazed at the power of the human
brain! We cdnuolt blveiee that we cluod
uesdnatnrd what we wree rdanieg. Due to
the phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mind,
aoccdring to rsceearh at Cmabgride
Uinervtsiy, it deons’t mttaer what oerdr the
ltteers in a word are, the only iprmoatnt
tnhig is that the frist and lsat ltteers are in
the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses
and you can slitl raed it wouthit a porbelm
bcuseae the hamun mind deos not raed
ervey lteter by istleft, but the word as a
wlohe. Ins’t that amzanig?
HI-TEC SHOE
COMPETITION
In the last issue we held a competition to win
a pair of Hi-Tec shoes.
The question was: What is the outsole called
on the Hi-Tec Venom III shoe?
Answer: Cobrasole
The lucky winner was Sarah Pullinger
of Worthing
FOOT(BALL) IN MOUTH
You couldn't have counted the number of
moves Alan Ball made . . . I counted four,
possibly five. John Motson
He had an eternity to play that ball, but he
took too long over it. Martin Tyler
Ian Pearce has limped off with what looks
like a shoulder injury. Tony Cottee
I'd like to play for an Italian club, like
Barcelona. Mark Draper
I never comment on referees and I'm not
going to break the habit of a lifetime for that
prat. Ron Atkinson
The match will be shown on Match of the
Day this evening. If you don't want to know
the result, look away now as we show you
Tony Adams lifting the trophy for Arsenal.
Steve Rider
Chile have three options - they could win or
they could lose. Kevin Keegan
He dribbles a lot and the opposition don't
like it - you can see it on their faces.
Ron Atkinson
I've told the players we need to win, so that
I can raise the cash to buy some new ones.
Chris Turner
BADMINTON STORIES
Did you meet the man/woman of your
dreams playing badminton? Have you lost
lots of weight playing the game or taken up
badminton as a way to get fit? Do you play
badminton with your teenage children or
grandchildren? If so, please let us know as
we're collecting badminton stories and
would love to hear yours. Email
deneiceclark@clareville.co.uk with your
name, age, town/county, and brief details
of your badminton story.
IT'S OFFICIAL...THERE
IS LIFE AFTER 40 IN
BADMINTON!!
The European Senior Championships was
held in Amersfoort, The Netherlands
between the 15th and 20th May. They
offered all five events across the age groups
35+, 40+, 45+, 50+, 55+ and 60+. Although
we have many players in the 65+ category,
some even participated in the 60+ groups.
Over 70 entries were submitted from
England, and England topped the medal
table for the Championships - beating
Denmark and Germany as the closest rivals.
I think you'll agree that it's a great
achievement, especially since a little closer
to home, Lorraine Cole (Under 19 Age Group
Coach) won Gold in the 35+ Women's
Doubles, and Jon Austin just missed out on
a Bronze medal in the 40+ Men's Singles.
Veterans' badminton in England is thriving,
I think they're setting a good example of
showing that there really are no limits to
playing badminton these days!
Below are the final placings of English
players/pairs:
35+ MEN'S SINGLES
Silver - Chris Shepperd (ENG)
Bronze - Alistair Jones (ENG)
35+ WOMEN'S SINGLES
Bronze - Betty Blair (ENG)
35+ MEN'S DOUBLES
Silver - Keith Goodey & Chris Shepperd (ENG)
Bronze - Julian Priestley & Chris Wray (ENG)
35+ WOMEN'S DOUBLES
Gold - Lorraine Cole & Tracey Dineen (ENG)
40+ MEN'S DOUBLES
Silver - Martin Haddon & James Teale (ENG)
45+ WOMEN'S SINGLES
Bronze - Linda Wood (ENG)
45+ MEN'S DOUBLES
Gold - Tim Hudson-Church
& Eric Plane (ENG)
45+ WOMEN'S DOUBLES
Bronze - Sue Hurst & Debbie Rigby (ENG)
45+ MIXED DOUBLES
Bronze - Tim Hudson-Church
& Debbie Rigby (ENG)
50+ WOMEN'S SINGLES
Gold - Christine Crossley (ENG)
Bronze - Reggie Baker (ENG)
50+ WOMEN'S DOUBLES
Gold - Christine Black & Christine Crossley
(SCO/ENG)
Silver - Pam Dallow & Reggie Baker (ENG)
50+ MIXED DOUBLES
Gold - Bill Hamblett & Reggie Baker (ENG)
Silver - Peter Emptage & Pam Dallow (ENG)
55+ MEN'S SINGLES
Silver - John Gardner (ENG)
55+ WOMEN'S SINGLES
Silver - Janet Fletcher (ENG)
55+ MEN'S DOUBLES
Silver - John Gardner
& Peter Emptage (ENG)
Bronze - Tony Evans & John Cocker (ENG)
55+ WOMEN'S DOUBLES
Gold - Janet Fletcher & Susan Ely (ENG)
Silver - Maureen Rimmer
& Sue Whittaker (ENG)
55+ MIXED DOUBLES
Gold - Tony Evans & Maureen Rimmer (ENG)
Bronze - Bob Bell & Pam Firth (ENG)
60+ WOMEN'S SINGLES
Bronze - Beryl Goodall (ENG)
60+ MEN'S DOUBLES
Gold - Michael Coley
& Harry Shadwick (ENG)
Silver - Ian Brothers & Jim Garrett (ENG)
60+ WOMEN'S DOUBLES
Silver - Brenda Andrew
& Beryl Goodall (ENG)
60+ MIXED DOUBLES
Gold - Harry Shadwick
& Brenda Andrew (ENG)
Silver - Jim Garret & Muriel Burgess (ENG)
Bronze - Ian Brothers
& Barbara Gibson (ENG)
40+ WOMEN'S DOUBLES
Silver - Sue Crompton & Viv Gillard (ENG)
SPORTSAID
SPONSORSHIP
40+ MIXED DOUBLES
Bronze - John Bowker
& Kathy Isherwood (ENG)
Chris Colby completed the Flora London
Marathon in 4 hours 23 mins (and finished
17,777th), raising £1600 for SportsAid.
45+ MEN'S SINGLES
Silver - Jack Webb (ENG)
Send your news to :
marketing@badmintonengland.co.uk

Badminton Magazine - June 2006

Transcription

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Badminton Magazine - September 2005