Badminton Magazine

Transcription

Badminton Magazine

ISSUE 29 | SEPTEMBER 2006 | PRICE £3.00
MAGAZINE
LIGHT ON YOUR FEET
COACHING TIPS FOR
IMPROVED AGILITY
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
ANTHONY CLARK
PREPARING
FOR 2012
NATHAN
AND GAIL
LOVE THEM
BEFORE THEY
LEAVE YOU
CONTENTS
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
05 ERIC BROWN ACTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE
THEY USED TO GO FOR A RUN
06 RICHARD EATON ON ENGLAND’S NEAT NEW WEAPON
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
09 MEMBERS NEWS FROM CHRIS JOHNSON
Front Cover
Nathan Robertson & Gail Emms,
Commonwealth Games Mixed Doubles
Champions 2006.
BADMINTON ENGLAND
National Badminton Centre,
Milton Keynes, MK8 9LA
Telephone: 01908 268400
Fax: 01908 268412
email: enquiries@badmintonengland.co.uk
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coaching@badmintonengland.co.uk
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development@badmintonengland.co.uk
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Events
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Marketing Department
marketing@badmintonengland.co.uk
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membership@badmintonengland.co.uk
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LIGHT ON YOUR FEET
10 AGILITY COACHING TIPS
A DAY IN A LIFE OF ANTHONY CLARKE
13 AN INSIGHT INTO THE ENGLAND INTERNATIONAL
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
14 A LOOK AT THE CAREER OF JOHN DAVID EDDY
VOLUNTEERS
17 THE FUTURE VISION FOR VOLUNTEERING
REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
19 SUE SUTTON WITH THE LATEST NEWS
LOVE THEM BEFORE THEY LEAVE YOU
20 A PROFILE OF NATHAN ROBERTSON AND GAIL EMMS
NATIONAL CALENDAR 2006-2007
24 AT-A-GLANCE GUIDE TO THE YEARS EVENTS
ENGLAND’S DOUBLE TAKE
27 ENGLAND’S SEARCH FOR A NEW WORLD CHAMPION
AAMIR GHAFFAR
29 AAMIR'S VIEW ON THE WORLD
PREPARING FOR 2012
31 A LOOK AT THE FUNDING FOR THE LONDON OLYMPICS
INTERNATIONAL ROUND-UP
33 INTERNATIONAL NEWS
POST BAG
35 LETTERS AND SNIPPETS
COUNTY ROUND UP
37 REGIONAL NEWS
BISI
39 GETTING READY FOR THE NEW SEASON
NATIONAL RANKINGS
Photography
www.badmintonphoto.com
Alan Spink
www.actionphotography.co.uk
40 NATIONAL RANKINGS AT A GLANCE
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43 YOUR VIEWS ON THE NEW SCORING SYSTEM
THE SCORING DEBATE CONTINUES
NATIONAL BADMINTON WEEK
45 SUPPORT NATIONAL BADMINTON WEEK BY GETTING INVOLVED
5 MINUTE BREAK
46 BADMINTON ENGLAND IN THE MEDIA, PUZZLE...
BADMINTONMAGAZINE September 2006 | 03
www.badmintonengland.co.uk
FROM THE ACTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE
This will be the last of my introductions to the magazine, as on September 11th
I shall be handing over to your new Chief Executive. I am confident that Adrian is an excellent
choice to drive the Association forward and look forward to working with him in my more
traditional role.
When I accepted the role of Acting Chief Executive I thought
my tenure would be somewhat shorter and therefore I am very
happy to be handing over, but would like to say that after a
somewhat diffident start I have found the job fun and one of the
most exciting and challenging times of my life.
I make no excuse for using the word fun, because a challenge
to me is fun, and I think that this has helped me in the more
stressful moments.
I have also enjoyed the working environment at Milton Keynes,
it is a very good place to work. What makes the environment is the
staff who work well together as a team have given me excellent
support. Their efforts are not always appreciated and I have heard
many a time as a volunteer “What do the staff do all day at Milton
Keynes?” and now I can genuinely confirm what I already knew,
work very hard promoting and supporting the game on your behalf.
The volume of work increases daily and with new initiatives coming
on board I cannot see this changing in the foreseeable future.
We also have a change in the Coaching Department with Katherine
Taylor taking over as Coaching Manager. Katherine comes from an
entirely different sport, athletics. I am certain she will make
a valuable contribution to Coaching and the Management Team.
Listening to Chris Evans in a traffic jam on the M1, he made the point
that the one constant in life is change, and of course when you think
about it this is true, things are changing all the time. Change is
never popular, particularly when that change affects you personally.
But in the end it is a case of accepting the change and making the
best of it.
Finally I would like to say thank you once again for the support
I have been given and wish my successor and the staff every
success in the future. They deserve it and you deserve it.
Eric Brown
Acting Chief Executive
ADRIAN CHRISTY
I am absolutely delighted to accept the post of Chief Executive of
BADMINTON England and to be able to lead an organisation that I believe has
such stature and reputation.
Some of you may know that I have had some
involvement with BADMINTON England in
recent years as I Chair the Rackets Sports
Group where badminton, squash, table tennis
and tennis have been considering how a
collaborative approach could have joint and
individual benefits. So while I am very much
looking forward to the prospect of meeting
many of you and learning from you, there is
a small element of familiarity.
There is a big challenge ahead for us all and
in order to meet that challenge I will be
drawing on the talent and knowledge held by
individuals and will mould that into a culture
that will enable us to collectively build on the
foundations that exist.
I can’t and won’t promise everything to
everyone, that would be impossible, but
I plan to build badminton into a first class
sport from grass roots to international medals.
One thing is for sure; this cannot be done
without the help, support, continued
dedication and commitment of the
membership, many of whom put so much into
the game. And please be assured that I will
draw on all those things to make badminton
successful for many years to come.
Of course, not everything can happen
overnight and the first step will be to
establish the long term aim of BADMINTON
England and to then clearly articulate that
direction that we will all move in together.
Only if people have bought into the direction
can we expect to have any chance of being
successful and therefore from the Board
through to club level, everyone has a role to
play in helping to design the detail of the
organisation.
I very much look forward to meeting many of
you in due course to contribute towards the
process but in the meantime, I would like to
take this opportunity to wish you all an
enjoyable and successful season.
Best wishes
Adrian Christy
SCIENTIFICALLY ARMED
THEY USED TO
GO FOR A RUN
By Richard Eaton,
Badminton Correspondent for The Times.
England have a neat new weapon. Actually they have several, not to mention a
few cunning plans as well, plus some promising new troops, and a grand
scheme which will intensify their Olympics-funded campaign to catch up with
the Asians.
But there is one new piece of
technological armoury in particular which
has been developed in the past year and
which is proving simultaneously popular
and repellent.
BADMINTON England coaches into a prematch routine, often at the hotel, and a
good de-brief afterwards, sometimes in
the hall.
This performance analysis, developed with
the supervision of Hannah Behan,
Performance Analyst, includes
sophisticated means of video ‘spying’ on
competitors around the world, and
improvement of psychological tools too.
It’s an iPaq system, small enough for
holding in the palm but, when
synchronised with a camera, large enough
in its visual scope for players to walk off
court and watch immediately what they
have and have not done.
It facilitates pre-match reminders of key
moments in players’ careers and things
they have done well. Plus bullet points, if
desired, of what they can and can’t do
against certain opponents,
They can see everything analysed in
starkest detail. The gismo enables the
coach to extract a few key points of the
match from both the opponent’s and ones
own performance.
But there have been scientific
developments in other areas of
preparation – especially in physiology, in
fitness testing, and in training, but also in
diet, medicine and psychology. It amounts
to a revolution.
It’s encouragingly insightful,
disconcertingly revealing, and triggers
such contrasting emotions that it seems
to capture something of the ingenious
new age into which badminton has
rapidly moved.
It might show for instance when and if a
doubles player is hitting the shuttle too
flat, enabling the other pair to cut it out
on the counter-attack. You can gather the
stats, select key points, and run the
camera on a laptop, showing perhaps half
a dozen points in sequence to illustrate
the tactical analysis.
The advantages are profound and obvious.
They enable a player to acquire the sort
of knowledge, understanding and
perception which might once have taken
players years to acquire. Nathan
Robertson, Gail Emms, Donna Kellogg and
Anthony Clark have become regulars in
using it.
Not so long ago players were often
training blindly, using movements and
increasing fitness in areas which had only
partial relevance to what happens on a
badminton court.
But the disadvantages are sometimes
more powerful than you might expect.
They come from deep-set insecurities
which many of us have.
“They don't all respond,” said Andy Wood,
Olympic Head Coach, meaning his players,
not the electronics. “most do, but it's
easier to look at your opponents rather
than yourself. Facing up to your own
deficiencies is crucial in order to
make progress.”
Despite that, the electronically-inspired
analysis has been introduced by
06 | BADMINTONMAGAZINE September 2006
Now there are many different types of
training - fast twitch training for speed
and explosive movements, cardio-vascular
training where breathing and heart rate
are closely monitored, strength training
using weights, shadow training replicating
movements on court, and resistance
training against a band or in water.
The programmes can be made specific not
only to badminton, but to individuals so
that specific strengths and weaknesses
are catered for. All the testing is carefully
measured and monitored for maximum
feedback. This is supported by medical
screening and prehab work with physios,
who identify which areas could be
problematic due to the nature of the sport
or the individual.
More attention these days is paid to
muscle imbalance, because badminton
players develop one side of the body more
than the other, and to strengthening
balancing areas to prevent injuries rather
than just treating them.
There is also more emphasis on the
importance of nutrition. Players are
placed on a dietary analysis, but eating is
a personal thing which can be connected
to hidden emotions, making the change of
habits difficult.
“If we have extreme cases it can take a
good while to educate people, like for
instance, Anthony Clark,” said Wood goodhumouredly. “He used to be a staunch
‘I can play great whatever I eat’, but later
in his career he was really into it.
“You almost have to sell it. You can
provide the right food and make sure that
the opportunities are there, but you may
have to win players’ minds over. But a
majority know they can extend their
careers and recover quicker if they put
good things into the tank.”
This is all related, of course, to psychology,
one of the fastest growing areas of sport
in recent years. BADMINTON England has
engaged the services of Kirsten Barnes
for the last two Olympics and increasing
awareness of the need for training
mentally is an ongoing project.
This includes the use of visualisation, and
the improvement of concentration and
awareness, including emotional
awareness. This involves controlling your
opponent’s as well as you own emotional
state on court, recognising and realising
how to act, and at what time to act.
In other words, how to impose yourself on
a match, how to recognise key moments.
It’s the art of competing which some
people, notably Simon Archer, have much
more than others.
These skills are often passed on from the
psychologist to the coach, because there
can be resistance to such things,
especially if they come from someone a
player doesn’t really know.
But it’s not only players who display
resistance, sometimes amusingly. This
became evident last year with the spread
of one of another new area of sports
science, the improvement of peripheral
vision, or eye training.
It can be necessary to watch the shuttle,
your partner, and gaps at the net, as well
as what’s around you, almost all at the
same time.
Footballers need something similar, which
created a moment of great hilarity when
Southampton FC thought it was good to
introduce eye training early last year.
Harry Redknapp, definitely of the old
school, thought otherwise. “My players
don’t need eye training,” he memorably
asserted. “Not unless they’ve got
something wrong with their minces.”
His team were relegated. Scientifically
armed England are on the way up.
Article Images:
Page 6: Nathan Robertson & Gail Emms.
Page 7: Donna Kellogg & Gail Emms, Anthony Clarke, Anthony
Clarke & Donna Kellogg.
Contact Chris Johnson,
Commercial and Membership Manager on
01908 268400
chrisjohnson@badmintonengland.co.uk
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
I would like to start my first Membership Matters contribution by saying a big
thank you to Gerry Cronin for her past management of Membership for BADMINTON
England. She has made a major contribution to the modernisation of this
programme and how we communicate with individuals, clubs and counties.
I was appointed as Commercial and Membership Manager in April
2006. After many months of research and meetings with potential
commercial rights management partners, BADMINTON England’s
Board took the decision to appoint a dedicated resource to be
responsible for all commercial income. My responsibility is to:
password, the secretary or nominated online registration club
contact can also publish details of your club on our web site.
The new affiliation fees for 2006/2007 season:
Senior Club Member (SCM)
£8.50
• Launch a funding and sponsorship programme with both existing
trade and new commercial companies to develop a portfolio of
badminton partners to generate income.
Junior Club Member (JCM)
£4.25
Junior Club
£42.30
ONcourt Senior
£14.85
• Introduce new commercial projects around website licensing and
merchandising to enhance the portfolio of BADMINTON England
products available to clubs, coaches, teachers, schools and all
badminton players.
ONcourt Junior
£7.45
Platinum ONcourt
£35.85
courtSIDE
£7.45
• Implement an affinity marketing programme to retain the
existing affiliated membership and develop new membership
packages to appeal to new prospects.
Over the summer we are working hard with Fixtures Live to
improve the service we give to our clubs and members. The search
function on ‘Find a Club’ will be improved so that badminton
players who wish to find a club can search by postcode for the
venue and also by the category of badminton matches which take
place at the club, i.e. Men’s Team, Women’s Team, Mixed Team,
Junior Section. This will help new players or those players who
move to a different area of the country. We are also working on an
online payment facility to enhance the membership renewal
process. This online payment project will also include the provision
for online tournament registration.
• Increase TV coverage of events and explore all prospects
for new media opportunities such as streaming, text SMS
and broadband.
We are now fully prepared for the 2006/2007 season – counties
have been sent all the renewal documents for clubs and your club
should have received your pack over the summer. Clubs who
registered online last year were delighted at the ease of the
renewal process so I would like to take this opportunity to invite
more of you to come on board! With your own dedicated login and
EXCITING NEW MEMBER BENEFIT…
BADMINTON.TV WEB SITE – ‘IMPROVING YOUR BADMINTON’
BADMINTON England have partnered with technology specialists Inchima Limited to build a new
website that is packed full of video instruction and articles that will help you improve your game.
badminton.tv is a site dedicated to helping grass roots, club and
county players improve their game with professional and insightful
instruction. With new and unique content added every month, it will
offer a unique service to badminton players in both England and all
over the world.
The site will also give you unparalleled access to top players and
coaches, with tips and advice from the professionals, player
interviews as well as training journals from players at all levels of the
game. The service is a unique opportunity to improve your game at
your own pace and in the comfort of your own home – each lesson
will be focused on one practical learning point that you can
immediately take onto the court to improve your game.
at all aspects of the game to help you improve at every level. As well
as coaching advice from top coaches and players, there will be help
with the mental game, strategy, psychology and tactics, racket and
equipment advice, fitness videos and tutorials.
Everyone gets a ‘try before you buy’ one month no risk trial. A fully
comprehensive membership package with access to all content costs
as little as £2.99 per month for BADMINTON England affiliated
members.
Join us at www.badminton.tv to start improving your game.
Each registered member will get tips, lessons and drills in the form
of video, audio and articles as well as pro-player analysis. It will look
COACHING – AGILITY TIPS
LIGHT ON
YOUR FEET
Agility can be defined as ‘the ability to change direction quickly’. It’s a vital
component in badminton as the relatively small court area, along with the speed the
game is played at, means to be a successful player you need to be an agile player. The
aim of this article is to give coaches and players ideas on what they can do to
improve agility in a non-sports specific but game-like fashion, so the ideas are
suitable for the Fundamentals group.
AGILE - IN WHAT DIRECTION?
You need to be able to move sideways,
backwards and forwards quickly, need to be
able to turn quickly and get from extreme
low positions to very high positions. The last
part is really important as it is what sets our
sport apart from many other racket sports.
GENERAL AGILITY GAMES
Simple Relay Games
Make up some team relay games that focus
on moving sideways, forwards and
backwards, rotating or going from high to
low. An example would be side-stepping
along a line between two cones, going there
and back three times before tagging the
next person in your team, who then has their
go. Don’t make the distances between the
cones too large, the whole point of agility is
changes in direction.
‘Take that here, put it there’ Games
Basically this is any game where you move
and collect something, carry it and place it in
a new position. An example would be picking
a set number of shuttles off the ground and
placing them somewhere high, for example
in a suspended bucket. This is an excellent
way of getting used to what badminton
makes you do - going from high to low. With
a bit of thought you can build in jumping and
rotating.
Elimination Games
Mark out two separate areas on the
court/training area, one main play area and
another smaller area. Divide the group into
three teams. One team carry a ball each
(they cannot throw it). Their aim is to try to
‘tag’ the members of the other two teams
with the ball, who try to evade them whilst
remaining in the main play area. If anyone is
tagged they move to the side to complete
another agility task (e.g. side-stepping task)
before returning to the game. The game
finishes when all players are tagged or after
a set time when the number of players not
tagged are counted and compared to the
score of the other teams when they have a
go. Once the game is finished, rotate the
teams so that a different team is ‘on’. Note
that the eliminated players do not sit out –
they have a great opportunity to both
improve their agility and rejoin the game by
completing a set task in the side area.
Trophy Games
Mark out an area to play in and decide on a
time you are going to play for (e.g. 1min).
Each person has a tag (a thin strip of
material) which they tuck in their waistband.
The players run around in their area trying
to catch other players’ tags. If they are
successful then any captured tags are
immediately placed in the waistband of the
successful player. The winner is the player
with the most tags.
Goalkeeping Games
Goalkeepers are agile, so anything based
around stopping an object going into a goal
is likely to help agility. A great fun variation
for badminton is to get a cheap fishing net
and cut it down to racket length. Mark out a
goal area, your partner (the ‘striker’) throws
five shuttles in turn trying to score a goal,
and the ‘goalkeeper’ tries to save goals by
catching them in his net.
Testing: How agile are you?
The measurement of something like agility
always poses a challenge especially if we
want to make it truly reflective of what really
happens during a rally on court. However, as
with all of the components of fitness, such
as speed, strength and endurance, it is a
really useful aid to training if we are able to
include some objective measures (it can also
be a great goal setting tool). With this in
mind BADMINTON England have worked with
physiologists to develop a series of fitness
tests that are specific to badminton. These
include speed (and agility) tests, tests for
both arm and leg power as well as a
specifically adapted multi-stage fitness test
to be carried out on a badminton court. It is
intended to be suitable for all standards of
player. The fitness testing pack costs £14.99
and is available from the BADMINTON
England online shop. or through Mark
Patmore in the Coaching Department at
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A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
ANTHONY CLARK
My day often starts about 2am with my son Rowan
shouting “Daddy daddy”, so either my wife or I crawl
out of bed and put him back. Again at about 5.30am
the routine is repeated, but this time I pick him up and
let him sleep between my wife and I. Half an hour later
my daughter Mia climbs in – it’s a good job we have a
six foot bed! Hardly a relaxing start to the day but I
adore my kids so it goes with the territory.
Training can start at either 8.30am or
10.30am depending what we’re working
on. If I have an 8.30am start, I get up at
6.45am and head straight down the
motorway to Milton Keynes which takes
just over an hour - Chris Moyles on Radio
One makes the journey more bearable.
If I have a 10.30am start, I get up with the
kids at 6.45am, get breakfast and take
Mia to school before heading off to Milton
Keynes at 9am.
My coaches Julian Robertson and Peter
Jeffrey always make sure that my
training sessions are physically
demanding and last for around two hours.
My former coach Rexy Manaiky, who was
World and Olympic Champion, always
taught us to train really hard should you
want to achieve anything!
If we have no tournaments for a while the
session will involve lots of long hard
rallies to build up endurance and
strength, followed by lots of other
endurance based practices.
If we have a tournament coming up, the
session will concentrate more on speed
work, involving lots of short rallies at
top speed.
Lunchtime is spent in the lodge at Milton
Keynes, then I rest until my next session,
watching Bargain Hunt and Cash in the
Attic. A bit sad really but it’s a time when
I want to relax and recover from the
morning session.
I have recently taken over the role of
‘players‘ rep’ which involves representing
the players at the management meeting
with coaches and officials of BADMINTON
England. I enjoy this as it gives me an
opportunity to ‘air’ my views, particularly
on matters of preparation for and during
team events and competitions.
Having won fifty caps for England I believe
I can give a great deal of advice to the
new and existing players and it’s great to
give something back to the sport.
Following lunch, the afternoon session
starts at 2.30pm. Again, depending on the
time of year and whether tournaments
are imminent, this session will either be a
cardiovascular or weights session.
Alternatively, I will have an individual
session with either Pete or Julian.
It’s then time to get back in my car and
drive home. Emma, my wife, will usually
have dinner on the table for about
5.30pm so we can all sit together and
have a family meal. I will play with the
kids for about an hour before they go to
bed then I can relax on the sofa with
Emma. Having said that, if I don’t have
any tournaments I may go running or on
the elliptical machine for about forty
minutes - you always know the Chinese
will have done more training than you
have that day and I really want to
compete with them.
Any time I get off from badminton I spend
with my family, which is great. I spend so
much time away from home that I value
every second spent with them. The smiles
on my kids faces when I get home is the
most precious thing in my life and, even
though trying to be a professional
sportsman and a family man can be
difficult, I wouldn’t change any of it. I love
my family so much and maybe that’s why
I try so hard to bring them back a trophy!
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
WHERE ARE
By TOM MARRS
When John David Eddy was born in Knenhall, near Stone in Staffordshire
(he describes his birth as ‘a mistake’) it seemed that sport would play an important
part in his life.
Both parents were keen on sport and
gave him every encouragement from a
very early age. His brother Ian, nine years
his senior, was already well on his way to
representing Staffordshire at both tennis
and badminton and was generous with
his time helping ‘young David’.
His sister, Sheila, who was separated
from her new brother by twelve years,
was already a very good badminton
player and later was to partner him in
mixed doubles.
Education began at Spotland House,
Trentham followed by Newcastle High
School. David left with good memories of
both based more on his sporting
achievements than his academic effort.
He played in his first junior tennis
tournament at the age of eight and
subsequently qualified for Junior
Wimbledon, played table tennis in the
Stone League and represented Barlaston
Cricket Club (The Swans) at every level
culminating in eight enjoyable years in
the first team.
THE BADMINTON CAREER
He had been enthused by badminton
from an early age.
His early local inspiration was the late
Jack McColl, another multi-talented
sportsman who played tennis and rugby
for his county and went on to become
England’s No.1 badminton singles player
and, later, to manage England teams.
Jack forecast when David was eight years
old that he would play badminton for
England one day. He was so right.
words he “had a fabulous time but did
little real work”. However this “fabulous
time” was the result of sport and ‘other
spare-time activities’ rather than
academic success.
In 1965 he followed his father and brother
Ian into The District Bank (later to
become NatWest). He was pleased to see
that the bank actively encouraged sport
and allowed time off to pursue his
badminton ambitions. His first cap for
England came at Wallasey, Cheshire in
February 1967 in a Thomas Cup tie
against South Africa which England lost
3–6. Although selected in the squad David
didn’t play so he maintained an unbeaten
record from his international debut.
His breakthrough to true international
level followed with a singles win over the
then England No.1 Roger Mills, and with
the start of his doubles partnership with
Bob Powell from Cheshire.
Eddy and Powell started their first season
together by winning the Wimbledon
Open, beating all the top pairs of the day.
From there they went on to make several
international appearances together, won
a number of international tournaments,
including the inaugural European
Championships in Bochum, Germany in
1968 and appeared in two consecutive All
England finals in 1969 and 1970.
Meanwhile, the legendary Tony Jordan
retired after making his one hundredth
appearance for England and David
inherited his mixed partner Sue Whetnall,
who helped him win the European mixed
title in 1970 and, more importantly to
him, his only All England title in 1974.
THE LATER YEARS
From Newcastle High School he moved to
Nottingham University where in his own
Sadly Bob Powell decided to retire in 1971
at the ripe old age of 23, and David struck
up a partnership with a long time
The younger David Eddy at the height of his
International career in the 1960’s.
Staffordshire friend Ed Sutton. The new
combination won the English National
title and The Danish Open, along with
a number of other international
tournaments and came close to two All
England finals.
Participation in the first ever World
Championships in Malmo, Sweden in 1977
proved also to be his last appearance in
this event with, at the age of 33,
retirement looming. The last of his
England caps came in October 1979
against Denmark in The Northgate Arena,
Chester, a match won by the Danes 4 – 3.
So his international career finished where
it started, Cheshire.
Fifty eight appearances for England and
many other great experiences - but
what next?
THEY NOW?
Not surprisingly life continued to be
dominated by badminton, with some golf
and tennis thrown in!
In 1973 David had the foresight to qualify
as a BAofE Advance Coach, a qualification
he is still putting to good use.
For many years he has been manager and
coach to Staffordshire County Badminton
Association and, from 1998 to date, Head
Coach to Birmingham University.
The administrative side of the game
started taking up more and more of his
time and this really took off in 1991 when
he was persuaded (by the author !) to
take on a marketing role in the planning
of the 1993 World Championships, which
were to be held in the newly opened
National Indoor Arena in Birmingham. He
had moved to Birmingham some years
earlier with NatWest and in 1992 became
manager of their Bull Ring branch.
His contacts within and outside the game
were invaluable, and his legendary
appetite for hard work made a massive
contribution to a successful event.
He was too good a resource to lose and
I was able to persuade him to get
involved in the affairs of the National
Association. He is currently Chairman of
BADMINTON England’s Elite Play Board,
a member of The All England Board of
Management and BADMINTON England’s
Board of Directors.
At the same time his playing career
continues on the booming veteran’s
circuit. As well as many national veterans
titles he has won the Over 45 World
Masters title in Denmark and the Over 55
World Seniors in Bulgaria.
had a spectacularly successful hip resurfacing operation carried out by the
great innovative surgeon, Derek McMinn.
He was soon back on the badminton court
and such was the success of the operation
(which at the time was not embraced by
the entire medical profession) that BBC
Panorama made a programme comparing
the techniques of the traditional hip
replacement with the re-surfacing
procedure featuring David Eddy as
evidence of the success of the latter.
At the age of 51 in 1995 he persuaded
NatWest to give him early retirement to
pursue his second badminton career.
There is no doubt he is using this
opportunity to the full and contributing
so much to the game he loves.
His veteran’s career came to a temporary
halt in 1992/1993 caused by severe
problems with his left hip, but in 1994 he
Dave acknowledges the applause from the winners podium after winning the Over 55 Singles title at the World Seniors in Bulgaria in 2003.
THE FUTURE VISION FOR VOLUNTEERING
By Justin Price, Volunteer & Development Co-ordinator
WHERE ARE WE NOW?
At the heart of any successful badminton
club, league, county association or event is
a committed group of volunteers, without
whom our sport would simply not survive.
From Shuttle Monitor to Tournament
Secretary, Publicity Officer to Line Judge,
it is fair to say badminton is synonymous
with volunteering, and recognising the
invaluable contribution of our unpaid
workforce and the roles which they so
generously perform, BADMINTON England
has published the Volunteer Strategy
2006-09. The strategy has been
commissioned to secure the sustainability
of badminton in England for all ages, and
THE NEEDS OF
BADMINTON
To produce a
vibrant and
enthusiastic
workforce that has
the capacity and
knowledge to help
make badminton
one of England’s
most popular and
accessible sports
• A shortage of volunteers available to
deliver daytime coaching.
to facilitate the expansion of the current
workforce in anticipation of badminton’s
growth as a result of London 2012.
• A struggle in recruiting volunteers for
continuity roles.
THE CHALLENGES FACING
VOLUNTEERS
The strategy has been written following
consultation with volunteers involved in
junior, senior and veterans’ badminton. An
action plan is in place to address the
following central issues which these
volunteers suggest are the greatest
challenges to the essential workforce:
• A need for better communication of
volunteering strategy and support which
is available to county associations,
leagues and clubs.
ISSUES DRIVING
STRATEGY
Volunteer’s contributions
are essential to
BADMINTON England.
An ageing volunteer
workforce.
Competition for
volunteers’ time.
Increasing public profile
of badminton.
• No current database available to match
volunteers’ skill base to volunteering
opportunities.
• A need for the next generation of
volunteers to be recruited, and most
importantly, mentored by our
experienced volunteers.
• The need for paperwork to be kept to a
minimum.
PLANS TO COMBAT
ISSUES
THE RESULTS
Improve communication of
‘Volunteer Strategy’ from
BADMINTON England to partners.
BADMINTON England professionals
and volunteers sharing one goal.
Target young volunteers,
volunteers for continuity roles
and implement a volunteer
mentoring scheme.
Construct a volunteer database
and improve the process of
matching volunteer skills to
volunteer role.
Keep paperwork to a minimum
and reward volunteers effort
and commitment.
A workforce equipped to deal with
increased participation linked to
badminton’s growing public profile.
A sustainable badminton
programme across the country,
with new volunteers benefiting
from existing volunteers skills.
A volunteer workforce that feel
appreciated and valued for the
essential role they play in
badminton in England.
Volunteer Audit
BADMINTON England is currently undertaking an audit of club, league and county
volunteers. The data collected from this survey will add to the current body of
knowledge regarding which volunteer opportunities are filled and which roles require
recruitment assistance both regionally and nationally. Furthermore, the data will
enable BADMINTON England to build a national profile of time required for various
volunteering opportunities.
Please assist your county, league and club secretaries as they gather the relevant
information, and may I take this opportunity to thank all the secretaries specifically
for the time they are giving to aid this audit.
A full version of the Volunteer Strategy can be downloaded by visiting the “How to
get involved” section at www.badmintonengland.co.uk. If you require any support
regarding recruitment and resources to train volunteers, please contact Justyn Price
(Volunteer & Development Co-ordinator) at volunteering@badmintonengland.co.uk or
on 01908 268400
Contact Sue Sutton,
National Development Director on
01908 268400
suesutton@badmintonengland.co.uk
REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
CALLING ALL CLUBS – WANT TO BUILD FOR TOMORROW?
Traditionally at this time of year many Local Authorities organise their Youth
Games. Hundreds of young school children are brought together to compete in a
variety of sports. In many areas of the country badminton has been included in
these games for the very first time.
interest and development potential the
course can bring, it augurs well for the
future. This course supersedes the bolt on
module for Community Sports Leaders and
is aimed at young helpers aged thirteen and
above. In tandem with this, training has
taken place to create tutors for the first
phases of the BIG initiative which, along
with the wide range of supporting resources
available, means we are well placed to take
lots more expertise, support and knowledge
into schools. Success will bring more young
players into our sport through schools and
this in turn could help swell the numbers of
affiliated players in senior clubs.
This has been made possible by the efforts
of our Badminton Development Officers
(BDOs) who have liaised closely with County
Sports Partnerships (CSPs) to secure the
inclusion of badminton within the games.
Katie Gatt’s (Shropshire BDO) efforts gained
justifiable reward recently when forty-eight
players representing six districts competed
for the honours in the Shropshire Youth
Games. Oswestry emerged as winners which
pleased Katie no end as she had
volunteered to be Team Manager. “The team
were ecstatic” said Katie, “I was so proud
presenting my team with their well deserved
gold medals, roll on next year.”
BDOs, building on initiatives like this, can
help you recruit members for your club.
National statistics show that more young
members are required in the majority of
areas. So why not contact your BDO and
work with them to use the success of
badminton in the Youth Games as a
recruitment vehicle?
Silver Clubmark accreditation successes
continue. In the South West, Swanage
(Dorset), BATS (Horrabridge, Devon) and
Circus (Torquay) have all gained both senior
and junior club accreditation. In the East,
Abbeygate Badminton Club have done
likewise and this came on the back of
further success as they secured £160,000
Community Clubs Development funding for
refurbishment work at their club venue in
King Edward VI School, Bury St Edmunds.
At the time of going to press seventy clubs
have gained Silver status and a further two
hundred plus are working towards it.
James Watmough (RDM Midlands) reports
the opening of a new sports complex at
Central College Grantham, Lincs with
coaches from Grantham BC conducting
a session with school children as part of the
opening ceremony. Central College had not
previously had a sports hall and the new
after school badminton club is proving very
popular, as are the sessions for other
primary and secondary schools hosted at
the school. The College is now working
towards achieving Academy status. There is
further Lincolnshire success to report. Two
part-time community sports badminton
coaches have been appointed by the
Lincolnshire Sports Partnership and the
coaches are currently taking badminton
into schools in Gainsborough, Stamford
and Grantham.
The other final piece of news is that
BADMINTON England is saying farewell to
Chris Colby (RDM London) and Matt Shuker
(RDM South/South East). Both of these
officers have been working in the
department since the beginning of the
Whole Sport Plan and have been
instrumental in guiding their regions to
success in achieving targets within the plan.
It is with regret that we lose them but given
their outstanding achievements and
personal skills it is really no surprise. Sport
England and Carlton, respectively, are clear
winners. Congratulations to both and our
warm wishes to their future success.
But one addition - we welcome Rhys FosterLloyd into the world and congratulate Vicky
(RDM North) and John on his safe arrival!
Also, congratulations to Mark Burgess on his
new role as RDM for London.
Two familiarisation courses for the
Badminton Junior Helper Award have been
completed in Dorset and Devon. David Owen
(Axe Valley Community College) said
“The course was well presented, helpful and
informative.” If this is indicative of the
NATHAN ROBERTSON & GAIL EMMS
NATHAN AND GAIL
LOVE THEM BEFORE
THEY LEAVE YOU
By Richard Eaton,
“I’m not one of those people who is fantastically in love with the game,”
said Gail Emms. “I don’t want to let people down, but I want to get away from
badminton.” It may sound stunning coming from the best known woman player
England has ever had, but don’t be too shocked. Emms won’t be quitting right
now, her remarks are understandable.
Sure, she and Nathan Robertson are the
highest profile partnership England have
ever had, much of it has been wonderful
and some of it rewarding.
But when you have had injuries and
exhaustion, damaging schedules and
controversial scoring systems,
incomprehensible politics, and pressure,
pressure, pressure, it’s not surprising that
you want something different when your
career is over.
I have no plans for after the Olympics, but if I
achieve what I want, I could still go on. The circus
which happens after you win a medal is quite
rewarding financially and it wouldn’t make sense
Nathan Robertson
to retire immediately.
‘‘
’’
So, love them while you can. Leave you is
what they soon will do.
September. Against any of the leading pairs
“we still have the control - especially where
we want it,” he reckoned.
It will happen in less than two years time, or
at least it will for Emms. She won’t continue
competing beyond the 2008 Olympics, and
probably Robertson won’t either, even if one
suspects he might like to.
But it was his comments about his partner
which caused ripples. “Gail’s one of the
best three or four in the world,” he said.
“She’s improved so much from the back
and in defence.”
“I have no plans for after the Olympics,” he
said. “But if I achieve what I want I could
still go on. The circus which happens after
you win a medal is quite rewarding
financially and it wouldn’t make sense to
retire immediately.”
Though this may not have sounded all that
significant, it actually spoke volumes about
the change in their relationship. She
certainly thought so.
Perhaps the feeling that time is short has
been stirring hidden emotions, because
both were in revealing frames of mind.
“For the first few years it was all Nathan,”
she went on, without rancour. “He was
such a good player, it was always me
playing catch up. Now I feel much more
equal to him.
Although Robertson admitted he had
mentally fallen apart at the Europeans, he
sounded pretty integrated when discussing
their attempt on the world title in
“It was Nathan, Nathan, Nathan, so now it’s
nice that people recognise I have improved.
He is so talented, and because he was far
above anyone else in England it was always
me playing with him,” she said, suggesting
she had felt like his sidekick.
Had that been hard to handle? “Yes” she
agreed, “but I’m quite an arrogant person.
I can big myself up, but I’m realistic as well.
I knew I had areas which needed
improving.
“They used to flick me and get me to the
back, and then they would drive at me and
I would get stuck. He can do without that –
worrying about me. I have to be good
defensively or we’re in trouble. Yes, I’m
really lucky to be playing with Nathan.”
So if she is so fortunate, why are the
negative feelings about badminton so
strong? The European Championships in
April, so disastrously close in time to the
Commonwealth Games, and yet so far
apart in miles, certainly exacerbated them.
Robertson recalls the loss of their European title. “I was totally
exhausted,” he said. “My personal goal had been to win the
Commonwealth Games, and I was satisfied that we did, which was
possibly a bad thing because after the Europeans I was not as
disappointed as I should have been.”
Emms agrees, “I never thought we would feel like that. We looked at
each other after losing the Mixed Doubles and said: ‘I don’t care’.
It’s a horrible feeling to come off and not care.”
It was another testimony to her resilience that she should
nevertheless have gone on to win a European Gold Medal with
Donna Kellogg in the Women’s Doubles. Emms has summoned this
quality in many situations, one of which is doing what many players
have to do – adapting to competing in front of parents.
She describes it with a black humour directed less at their
distracting presence than at her own reaction to the stress which
can develop.
“You have to be selfish when they are there, because you can get
too involved in ‘Are they all right?’” she said. “So I have to tell
them, don’t come up to me, I can be stern and will probably bite
your head off!
“Sometimes you can feel like you have failed if you don’t win, but it’s
not like that. Really they are just happy to be there to support you.”
So when she has off-loaded this and other badminton stresses for
the very last time, what will she do? An admin job – no.
Management – probably not. Coaching - definitely not! “Coaches are
slightly mad,” she says. “I don’t know how Andy (Wood) does it. I
couldn’t cope with me and Nathan.”
There is a glimmer of interest when PR is mentioned, but there may
be higher profile aims. Both Robertson and Emms have made many
media appearances, have broadcasting experience, brains and
charisma. The combination is potent.
Emms made two very successful appearances on a Question of
Sport. Will she become a media personality, perhaps? You could
imagine it; probably she can’t say it.
As for Nathan, we know he likes staying around to hit shuttles for
longer than Gail. He may do so again, because there are people who
would really like him to go on to London 2012.
He’s more than talented enough and has the tactical style to do well
at 35. But it’s best to tell him that he can’t do it - because he loves
proving people wrong. Anyone want a partner?
“I don’t know what it is – you can always hear your parents’ voice,
can’t you? My mum will keep going on ‘Come on Gail’, and my dad
‘Come on England’, and I sometimes want to look at them and go
‘Shut up’!
NATIONAL BADMINTON
Further information and more tournaments can be found on our website
www.badmintonengland.co.uk A full version of the calendar is available under 'Events'.
AUGUST
19-20
Yorkshire
Under 19
21-27
Korea Open
International
2006
25-27
Langenfield Junior
International
28-2 September
Hong Kong Open
International
SEPTEMBER
2-3
Hertfordshire
Satellite
Milton Keynes
Under 17 Gold
9-10
Yorkshire
ASCIS Elite
16-17
Cornwall
Satellite
OCTOBER
7
Hull
Orbital
7-8
Middlesex
Challenger
Cumbria *B
Veterans
Nottinghamshire
Under 17 Gold
10-15
JAPAN OPEN
International
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
2-5
World Junior Team
Championships
International
1-3
Yehlex National
Veterans
Championships
Veterans
4
Jersey
Satellite
Essex
Orbital
Middlesex *C
Veterans
4-5
Yorkshire
Under 17 Gold
Wimbledon
Under 19
14-15
Northumberland
Satellite
Bristol
Under 13 Gold
Stoke-on-Trent
Under 15 Gold
15
Dorset
Satellite
7-12
DUTCH OPEN
International
Stoke-on-Trent
Under 13 Gold
14-17
Danish Cup
Junior International
10-12
Kent *B
Veterans
17-22
CHINA OPEN
International
11
Hull *C
Veterans
21-22
Staffordshire
Satellite
11-12
VICTOR SPORTS ICC
PREMIER A/B
Slough
Under 15 Gold
18-24
WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIPS
Madrid
23-24
Harrogate
Satellite
Bournemouth
Satellite
30-1 October
County Restricted
Weekend
Senior and Junior
21
Cumbria
Orbital
Durham
Under 19
21-22
High Wycombe
Under 19
Gloucestershire
Under 15 Gold
27-28
Oxfordshire
Satellite
28-29
Sussex
ASICS Elite
Northumberland *B
Veterans
Junior Restricted
weekend
31-5
DANISH OPEN
International
6-11
World Junior
Championships
International
17-18
Norfolk
Satellite
18-19
Wimbledon
ASICS Elite
Durham *C
Veterans
Slough
Under 13 Gold
23-26
SCOTTISH
INTERNATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIPS
International
24
Northumberland
International team
tournament
Juniors
25-26
Northumberland
U19
30-3
WELSH
INTERNATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIPS
International
2-3
Hampshire
Satellite
Cheltenham
Under 17 Gold
7-10
IRISH
INTERNATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIPS
International
9-10
Yorkshire
Challenger
Derbyshire/
Nottinghamshire
Under 19
Milton Keynes
Under 15 Gold
11
Elite Finals midweek
ASICS Elite
16-17
VICTOR SPORTS ICC
PREMIER A/B
Wigan
Under 13 Gold
CALENDAR 2006/2007
6-7
Slough
Under 17 Gold
12-13
Lancashire
Satellite
12-14
Home Countries
U17
13
Nottinghamshire
Under 18
13-14
Yehlex Veteran's ICC
Veterans
Yorkshire
Under 15 Gold
16-21
MALAYSIAN OPEN
International
17-21
Youth Olympics Australia
20-21
Northumberland
Challenger
Bournemouth
Under 19
Milton Keynes
Under 13 Gold
FEBRUARY
2-4
ENGLISH
NATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIPS
in partnership with
badmintondiscount.com,
Carlton, Hi-Tec and
Manchester City Council
3-4
Wigan
Under 17 Gold
10-11
VICTOR SPORTS ICC
PREMIER B
West of England
Masters *B
Veterans
Wigan
Under 15 Gold
17-18
Wimbledon
Challenger
Cheshire
Satellite
York
Under 13 Gold
22-25
Under 15 EightNations - Denmark
International
23-25
English National
Under 19
Championships
23-28
KOREAN OPEN
International
23
McCoig Trophy
International
(England v Scotland)
Veterans
26-27
Cambridgeshire
Satellite
24
Middlesex
Orbital
Devon
Satellite
24-25
Lancashire *B
Veterans
27-28
Hampshire *C
Veterans
25
Wiltshire
Satellite
MARCH
2-3
Leicestershire
Satellite
3-4
Cornwall
Veterans
Under 15 National
Championships Norwich
APRIL
4-8
European Junior
Championships
International
13-18
SWISS OPEN
International
14-15
VICTOR SPORTS,
17 – 21 and
ICC FINALS
16-17
Suffolk
Satellite
16-18
Yonex All England
Senior
Championships
Veterans
17-18
Under 17 National
Championships Bath
24
Milton Keynes
Under 18
24-25
Nottinghamshire
Challenger
Under 13 National
Championships Kettering
3-17
SUDIRMAN CUP Scotland
International
19
Circuit Finals Challenger /
Satellite / Orbital /
Under 18’s
Milton Keynes
Hull
Satellite
Yonex Veteran's
ICL Finals
Veterans
20-21
Berkshire
Satellite
26-29
Under 17 Six Nations
- The Netherlands
International
27-29
Under 15 Home
Countries
International
1-6
SINGAPORE OPEN
International
8-13
INDONESIAN
OPEN
International
Guernsey *C
Veterans
12-15
HARROD INTERCOUNTY
TOURNAMENT
Junior
JUNE
5
Wigan
Under 18
5-7
Guernsey
Satellite
6-11
YONEX ALL
ENGLAND OPEN
CHAMPIONSIPS
International
MAY
2007
JANUARY
28
Welsh *C
Veterans
31-1 April
VICTOR SPORTS ICC
PREMIER A
Yorkshire *C
Veterans
LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD
ENGLAND’S DOUBLE TAKE
By Richard Eaton,
England has not had a World Champion for more than 20 years, and that is
something which could be put to rights amidst the heat-soaked splendor of Madrid
at the end of September.
But it created a looking back as well as a
looking forward experience when Nathan
Robertson and Gail Emms missed a couple
of match points against the reigning World
Champions, Nova Widianto and Lilyana
Natsir, in a thrilling final at the Singapore
Open in June.
Looking back, because after being so
agonizingly close to success, it intensified
the feeling of what might have been and
reminded us that several match points also
escaped Robertson and Emms in the All
England final in January.
Looking forward, because it showed that
without doubt they remain good enough for
a world title – and one that could help
redraw badminton’s profile, so quickly
scribbled away by the media once the
Olympic picture had been forgotten.
This Singapore defeat was nevertheless a
decent result. It was Robertson’s and Emms’
first tournament since a horrendous spring
schedule cost them their European title
and left them feeling like throwing their
rackets away.
“We didn’t feel like we had completely
recovered by the time we went to
Singapore and we had had only a couple of
weeks of practice,” said Robertson. In
these circumstances they felt they had
played well, a verdict corroborated by
coach Andy Wood.
Since so narrowly losing the final in
Birmingham in January, Robertson and
Emms have achieved one of their major
aims by winning the Commonwealth title,
and are again playing well enough for major
success.
It left them less concerned about clinching a
top four world championship seeding during
the Korea and Hong Kong trips in August.
“Two years ago I might have felt the
pressure to do so,” said Emms. “Now I’m
more confident in my ability. Nathan and I
can beat anyone put in front of us.”
There are, as Robertson says, probably four
genuine world title contenders - the two
leading Chinese pairs, the Indonesians, and
themselves - so a comfortable run to the
semis would leave them importantly fresh
for the showdown matches.
But whether or not they get that seeding,
the English pair may remain unofficial
favorites. But these world championships
are important in other ways, because
England has hopes of quarter-finalists in
four events.
“We will be going in with more seeds
than for a long time and the more
quarter-finalists you have, the more
chances of medalists,” said Ian Wright,
England head coach.
Among them could be Tracey Hallam, who
followed the capture of the Commonwealth
title in March with her best sequence of
results at the Malaysian Open in June,
suggesting she could challenge to become
England’s first singles semi-finalist since
Helen Troke in 1983.
Although Hallam felt that she was not ready
for her Far East trip in May and June, just as
Robertson and Emms did, she somehow
produced a career-first 6-21 24-22 21-18 win
over world champion Xie Xingfang.
In the previous two days the 31-year-old also
had startling victories over China Masters
champion Wang Lin, and world number four
Pi Hongyang, before losing the final to
Olympic champion Zhang Ning. But Hallam
was mystified. “I have no idea why it
happened,” she said.
“I was really pleased with the way I
played against Pi – she defends well but
when I moved her she was slower than
expected. Against Xie I just fought and
got her shots back. My movement has
improvement has improved since Yvette
(Yun Luo) arrived in England.”
But Hallam was traveling without a coach.
In Taipei she was helped by Rajiv Ouseph
and the enterprising Andrew Smith, who
sometimes trains in Malaysia and was
already in the Far East. This led to his
becoming the only England player at the
Indonesian Open after an earthquake
erupted the day the squad was due to fly
to there.
Since climbing from World No.35 to the
verge of the top 20 this year, Smith has
become England’s leading men’s singles
player, reaching the third rounds in
Singapore and Malaysia, while Ouseph
became England’s first five-star men’s
singles quarter-finalist for a long time after
a good win in Taipei over Bobby Milroy, the
seeded Canadian.
So England now have a quartet of men’s
singles players (Aamir Ghaffar and Nick Kidd
are the others) at a similar decent level,
who can push each other to do better. Of
these Smith is the most surprising.
“He has come back into the fold as regards
team selection and has played really well
this year,” Wright commented. “If Andrew
wins some matches in August he could get a
last 16 seeding which will be a first for a
long time.
“He’s a very skilful player and the new
scoring suits players with the shots and
the ability to take a point. It’s harder now
to sit back and rely on being a physical
player. It’s easier for him to stretch a top
ten player now.”
Smith had already shown that he could be
dangerous by taking a game off Lin Dan, the
world number one from China, at the
Thomas and Uber Cups finals in Tokyo,
where there were consolations for the
injury-enforced absence of six leading
players.
England emerged with a last eight place for
the men, top level experience for younger
players, including Ouseph, Chris Langridge
and Jenny Wallwork, and valuable rest for
several stalwarts.
Among these were Emms and Donna
Kellogg, who won the European women’s
doubles title when they were barely fit and
have a chance of a Madrid medal too. Much
depends on a 3/4 seeding and a good draw.
Another who got a rest is Anthony Clark,
who subsequently climbed in to the world’s
top five in men’s doubles with Robert Blair;
they could challenge for a medal too.
All this brings hopes of an atonement for
England’s appallingly unlucky 2005 world
championship in Anaheim, and of a good
start to the inaugural 12-tournament 32draw Super Series. This, the latest
revolution from the revamped IBF, is now
only four months away.
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UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL
WITH AAMIR GHAFFAR
What have you been doing to aid the
Pakistan Earthquake appeal here in
England?
Since the Earthquake in October 2005 I have
been working with Dilawar Chaudhry of TKC
Restaurant on various events. We did one
show with Wilson and raised in excess of
£2400 for the appeal. We have some more
planned, but trying to fit them in with my
playing schedule is quite difficult. I have
family in the area that was hit by the quake,
so it is very important to do what I can.
Tell me about the Ambassadors
of Peace project.
Ambassadors of Peace is all about raising
awareness – for Asian people it is about
issues such as health and the needs of kids
and for others it is raising awareness about
our religion and culture. After 7/7 when the
charity was originally set up, we noticed that
some people had problems with the
misconception that all Muslims are bad.
Some would see every bearded Asian man
walking down the street as a terrorist! The
minority might be doing bad things, but the
majority are all respectable citizens going
about their lives as doctors, lawyers, and
even sportsmen.
What you are comes from the heart – my
belief is that most people are good and we
must do everything we can to overcome
these misconceptions.
How do you think sport affects
people’s lives?
Being active is one of the foundations for
health and wellbeing, benefiting everyone in
a multitude of ways. I would say that these
include a higher level of fitness, a sense of
discipline if you are involved in organised
sport, a healthy dose of competitiveness,
and much more.
Being involved in sport does not stop you
from being an asset to society, and you don't
have to choose between the two. Take for
example, the organisation called Right to
Play, they use sport to help
children, particularly
orphaned refugees to
forget the horror and
trauma of war.
I think sport needs
to be seen in a
holistic context
to add value,
passion and
energy to life, to
help provide us
with the spark
we need to
tackle the
really big issues
in life, like raising awareness of people less
fortunate than you, prejudice, and health and
well being.
Have you had any help from colleagues
with your fundraising efforts.
During the Commonwealth Games I got
some shirts signed by as many athletes as
I could – not only badminton players, but
track athletes, cyclists, swimmers as well.
This will be auctioned off at a big charity
dinner.
We are working with other partners to help
us raise awareness and money – for instance
the Islamic Bank of Britain is taking a
keen interest in our work. I am
doing my bit to help.
How can people get involved?
If you are interested in
holding a charity event for
the Earthquake Appeal,
please contact Aamir via
marketing@
badmintonengland.co.uk
Aamir's sponsor, Wilson,
have been working with
Aamir to promote
events which include a
4 hour badminton
session with top
players/coaches.
What are the Ambassadors of Peace doing
to increase awareness?
It’s different things for different people. For
the Asian kids on the street, it is to let them
know that there is a path to take to move to
greater things. It takes some belief in
yourself, but you can get there. My mum
always told me “study then sport”, and I
managed to do both, so it is not impossible.
For our parents and grandparents, it is about
a healthy diet. Traditionally Asian food is not
healthy with lots of oils and fats used in
cooking. A slightly different way of cooking
can help enormously. There are some simple
reminders that are relevant to everyone –
Islam says never eat full. Eat just enough to
alleviate your hunger, but don’t overeat.
We need to take the message out to the
public in a big way, so I am doing as much as
I can personally on TV and in press
interviews to promote what we are doing.
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PREPARING FOR 2012
As many people will be aware the International badminton landscape has
changed significantly over the past 30 years. England has a strong tradition of
success at the highest level, however in more recent times with the emergence of
the Asian nations and the resources allocated by governments it has become an
even greater challenge to deliver major medal honours.
By Jon Austin, Elite Programmes Manager.
With the announcement that London will
host the Olympic Games in 2012 it has
been widely published that Olympic
sports will receive further investment
initially through to Beijing 2008 followed
by further increases up to London 2012
for successful sports. At the same time as
confirming funding it was also agreed
that future “Performance” funding would
come through UK Sport rather than
Sport England.
One of the most significant developments
for Badminton is that a unique
opportunity has been created for greater
cooperation between each of the Home
Countries to develop and implement a
united strategy for the Olympic Games.
Whilst final arrangements have to be
agreed on the management of the GB
Badminton programme, significant
progress has been made to prepare
England for potential integration.
The challenge set for British sport in 2012
is to achieve fourth in the medal table
behind the USA, China and Russia. Prior
to releasing funds, UK Sport have
required Olympic sports to identify where
they feel they can challenge for medals
and increase the overall medal tally. In
recent years GB/England successes have
come through the doubles events most
notably mixed doubles. As a result of
these achievements there will be a
requirement to focus longer term UK
Sport funding in doubles where it is
believed there are more opportunities to
challenge for medals. Whilst it may not be
possible to direct UK Sport funding to
support singles in the future,
BADMINTON England recognise the
importance of singles and will commit to
the implementation of a number of
singles initiatives. The priority for this
new singles activity will be to encourage
more young talent to pursue singles as
their priority event, to raise the overall
domestic standard and ultimately to
increase the pool of players who could
challenge for international honours in the
future. As a secondary consideration it is
recognised that many of the world’s best
doubles players began their careers
competing at singles, the court coverage,
physical conditioning and mental
toughness required in singles can be ideal
foundations for a player wishing to
specialise in doubles.
At present the BADMINTON England
‘World Class Programmes’ has an
established training environment
structure throughout the country, this
includes at the hub, the National
Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes where
much of the training and preparation for
the England senior squad takes place. For
our younger players many of whom are in
University education there exists a High
Performance Centre Network based at
Loughborough, Bath and Sheffield. Daily
training and sport science support
including physiotherapy and Strength &
Conditioning are provided to assist with
the transition to the senior ranks. For the
younger players most of whom are still of
school age Junior Performance Cells run
to provide a maximum of 4 hours training
per week in centres throughout the
country. With the investment from UK
Sport we hope to develop an enhanced
badminton network that firstly increases
the High Performance Centres from
three to six venues and secondly to link
with Home Country activity where
players have qualified for the GB
Badminton programme.
The uncertainty surrounding these
changes has created significant
challenges for BADMINTON England,
however we are committed to pursuing
excellence both in terms of winning
medals in London and to creating a
lasting legacy of a sustainable player
pathway where players can fulfil their
potential what ever level that may be.
For further information regarding funding
and London 2012 go to
www.uksport.gov.uk and
www.london2012.org
INTERNATIONAL ROUND UP
EUROPE MVP CUP
AVIVA SINGAPORE OPEN
YONEX CHINESE TAIPEI OPEN
Europe staged a stunning fight-back to beat
Asia 10-8 and capture the $100,000 MVP
Cup in Manila, Philippines.
England’s Andrew Smith lost 21-9 21-16 to
Anup Sridnar of India in the third round of
the Aviva Singapore Open Men’s Singles,
whilst compatriot Tracey Hallam lost 21-11
16-21 21-18 to Li Chen in the second round of
the Women’s Singles.
European Junior Champion Rajiv Ouseph,
already ranked a career-high World No.94,
went down to World No.1 Lin Dan of China
21-14 21-13 after reaching the quarter-finals
of the Men’s Singles at the Yonex ChineseTaipei Open.
Men’s Doubles partners Anthony Clark and
Robert Blair, Women’s Doubles partners Gail
Emms and Donna Kellogg and Mixed Doubles
partners Robert Blair and Natalie Munt, and
Anthony Clark and Donna Kellogg all went
out in the quarter-finals with Clark and
Kellogg losing to eventual winners Nova
Widianto and Lilyana Natsir 21-15 21-18.
The 19-year-old Middlesex star, a real Men's
Singles prospect for London 2012, can be
very pleased with his best display on the
senior circuit, having disposed of Canada's
World No.35 Bobby Milroy on his way to the
last eight.
The Asians had won five of the nine matches
over the three days but Europe pulled back
from 3-0 down and 5-4 down due to their
two victories on finals day being worth three
points opposed to the two points the
previous day’s matches had been worth.
England's European Champions Gail Emms
(Hertforshire) and Donna Kellogg
(Derbyshire) started the fight-back with a
priceless win in the Women's Doubles and
then with wins from Denmark's European
Champions Thomas Laybourn and Kamilla
Juhl in the Mixed Doubles and from Chineseborn former European champion Yao Jie in
the Women's Singles. Europe lifted the cup
10 points to 8.
The other England member of the European
squad was Robert Blair (Leicestershire).
Final Day:
Mixed Doubles:
Thomas Laybourn & Kamilla Juhl (DEN) bt
Kennevic & Kennie Asuncion (PHI)
22-24, 21-17, 21-18
Women's Singles:
Yao Jie (NED) bt Zhang Ning (CHN)
21-19, 18-21, 21-11
Men's Singles:
Men’s Singles:
Women’s Singles:
Men’s Doubles:
Lee Kyung Wor & Lee Hyo Jun (KOR) bt
Gao Ling & Huang Sui (CHN) 21-18. 9-21, 21-17
Mixed Doubles:
Women’s Doubles:
Lilyana Natsir & Nova Widianto (CHN) bt
Jung Jae Sung & Lee Yong Dae (KOR)
21-14, 21-18
Wei Yang & Jiewen Zhang (CHN ) bt
Dan Zhang & Tingting Zhao (CHN)
21-18, 21-18
BALLARAT INTERNATIONAL
Mixed Doubles:
England’s Nick Kidd defeated John Moody
of New Zealand in straight games 21-18,
21-15 in the final of the Ballarat Eureka
International in Ballarat, Victoria to take
the Men’s Singles title.
MALAYSIA OPEN
Asia lead Europe 5-4 (two points for a win)
Tracey Hallam reached the final of the
Malaysian Open Ladies Singles before
losing out 21-12 21-13 to Zhang Ning of
China, whilst England’s Andrew Smith was
defeated 21-19 21-18 by Jin Chen also of
China in the third round.
Kenneth Jonassen (DEN) bt
Taufik Hidayat (IND) 21-17, 17-21, 21-12
Women's Doubles:
Gail Emms & Donna Kellogg (ENG) bt
Saralee Thounthongkam & Sathinee
Chankrachangwong (THI) 21-8, 21-15
Day One:
Asia lead Europe 3-0 (one point for a win)
Men's Singles:
Lin Dan (CHN) bt Niels Christian Kaldau (DEN)
19-21, 21-14, 21-10
Women's Singles:
Men’s Singles:
Women’s Singles:
Zhang Ning (CHN) bt Tracey Hallam (ENG)
21-12, 21-13
Men’s Doubles:
Koo Kien Keat & Chan Chong Ming (MAL) bt
Lin Woon Fui & Mohd Fairuzizian Tazari (MAL)
14-21, 21-11, 21-17
Zhang Ning (CHN) bt Yao Jie (NED) 21-17, 21-19
Gao Ling & Huang Sui (CHN) bt Du Jing
& Yu Yang (CHN) 9-21, 21-16, 21-17
Men's Doubles:
Mixed Doubles:
Lee Wan Wah & Choong Tan Fook (MAL) bt
Robert Blair (ENG) & Robert Mateusiak (POL)
23-21, 21-18
Zhang Jun & Gao Ling (CHN) bt Jonas
Rasmussen & Britta Anderson (DEN)
19-21, 21-14, 21-15
Men’s Singles:
Nick Kidd (ENG) bt John Moody (NZL)
21-18, 21-15
Women’s Singles:
Chia Chi Huang (AUS) bt Maggie Chan (NZL)
21-18, 21-4
Men’s Doubles:
Lee Chong Wei (MAL) bt Lin Dan (CHN)
21-18, 18-21, 23-21
Women’s Doubles:
Fu Haifeng & Cai Yun (CHN) bt Jung Jae
Sung & Lee Yong Dae (KOR) 21-14, 21-18
Women’s Doubles:
Flandy Limpete & Sigit Budiarto (IND) bt
Thomas Laybourn & Lars Paaske (DEN)
17-21, 21-14, 21-15
Day Two:
Men's Singles:
Ning Zhang (CHN) bt Xie Xingfang (CHN)
21-15, 21-15
Men’s Doubles:
Hongyan Pi (FRA) bt Mia Audina Tjiptawan
(FRA) 22-20, 22-20
Lin Dan (CHN) bt Kenneth Jonassen (DEN)
21-13, 14-21, 21-14
Wang Chen (Hong Kong) bt
Mia Audina (NED) 13-21, 21-14, 21-12
Lin Dan (CHN) bt Jin Chen (CHN) 21-13, 21-17
Women’s Singles:
Peter Gade (DEN) bt Kenneth Jonassen (DEN)
21-10, 21-14
Nova Widianto & Lilyana Natsir (INA) bt
Nathan Robertson & Gail Emms (ENG)
21-16, 20-22, 23-21
Women's Singles:
Men’s Singles:
Glenn Warfe & Ross Smith (AUS) bt Ashley
Brehaut & Muhammad Bin Hashim (AUS)
21-12, 21-16
Women’s Doubles:
Susan Dobson & Erin Carroll (AUS) bt
Angela Crow & Jessica Lyons (AUS)
21-16, 21-15
Mixed Doubles:
Kennie Asuncion & Kennevic Asuncion (PHI)
bt Renuga Veeran & Raj Veeran (AUS)
18-21, 21-14, 21-17
LOVE THE NEW LOOK MAGAZINE!
POSTBAG
However, I must take issue with the George
Wood articles on Serving.
CARLTON COACHING WEEKENDS AT THE NBC
The NBC continues to attract more and more clubs for coaching weekends and is delighted to
continue its sponsorship deal with Carlton.
For clubs who wish to book a training weekend, the cost for a group of eight to twelve people
will be £137.50 for affiliated clubs and £147.50 for non-affiliated ones and a special price of
£130.00 for clubs with Silver Club accreditation. This is based on having one coach, generally a
current England Squad player, with further coaches added as numbers increase. Prices include
full board twin room accommodation and twelve hours of coaching. Because of the high
demand for the NBC there are limited weekends available and these will be allocated on a first
come first served basis.
Carlton Personal Performance courses also remain very popular. A course with a maximum of
thirty-two players has been arranged for the weekend of 15-17 September 2006. Like the club
weekends, the course offers twelve hours coaching with a top class coach and two nights full board
accommodation in twin en-suite rooms for only £160.00. Discounts are available for groups of four
or more. It is aimed at both club and league players with different abilities being split up amongst
the coaches. For details of all coaching opportunities at the NBC phone Mark Burbidge on 01908
268400 or e-mail markburbidge@badmintonengland.co.uk
For the most part they're very good and I have
learned some good things from them, but in
both of them he alludes to the fact that unless
your opponent is very tall "he will have to be
hitting the shuttle upwards to you from his
server." Well, Law 9.1.8 states that "the flight of
the shuttle shall be upwards from the server's
racket ..." so if a tall player didn't hit the shuttle
upwards his serve would be foul.
I do think the Coaching Manager should know
the Laws of Badminton.
Keep up the good work!
Steve Mawer
CHELWOOD GATE BADMINTON CLUB
ACHIEVE SILVER CLUB STATUS
GAIL EMMS VISITS NORTHWOOD BC
Eighteen months ago, Uvarsi Naidoo of
Northwood Badminton Club won a Badminton
Magazine competition, the prize for which
was an evening with Gail Emms. Uvarsi won
the prize by saying that, given the
opportunity to have the Olympic Silver
Medallist visit our club, she’d take her out for
a curry and treat her in the manner an
Olympic Silver Medallist deserved.
Unfortunately for us, but fortunately for Gail
and BADMINTON England, her playing and
social schedule rapidly filled as success bred
success, and it was only as the longest day in
2006 dawned that the visit was finally able to
be arranged. Despite moving to Dubai since
winning the competition, Uvarsi managed to
fly back to claim her prize.
Gail arrived in the company of her ladies
doubles partner Donna Kellogg and the
evening started with a two hour badminton
session with nearly thirty of Northwood
Badminton Clubs members.
Chelwood Gate Badminton Club have recently
become one of the select few clubs nationally
to achieve badmintons Silver Club Accreditation
award, a double award for both their senior and
junior clubs. This puts them alongside just sixty
clubs nationwide and they become only the
second club to achieve this award in Sussex.
Jo Meacher
Club Development Officer
Having recently achieved Silver Club status
for both Northwood Senior and Junior Clubs,
Gail was asked to present the awards to the
club and thank them for their efforts.
Everyone at the club had a superb time and
Gail and Donna proved to be great adverts
for our sport.
Thank you to everyone for making this
fantastic evening such a success!
Andy Hastings
Middlesex Badminton Development Officer
DATE FOR YOUR DIARY! – BRITISH EGG WEEK 9th – 15th OCTOBER 2006
A major new campaign to be launched by British Lion eggs will give budding sports stars the
chance to get closer to their heroes and learn about the importance of healthy eating for this
year’s British Egg Week.
British Lion eggs have enlisted the support of a team of British sporting Lions, including Michael
Vaughan, Sir Steve Redgrave and Andrew Murray to launch a new charity recipe booklet, ‘Sporting
Eggsellence’ which will also raise money for the charity SPARKS (Sports Aiding Medical Research
for Kids).
Eggs are packed with protein for muscle growth and repair – so whether you choose Martin
Johnson’s scrambled eggs or Andrew Strauss’ eggs Benedict, everyone can enjoy the same recipe
as their sporting hero and get a healthy balanced meal as part of the deal!
To show kids how easy it is to whip up an egg dish fit for a champion, an OmeletteXpress bar
manned by World Record Omelette maker Howard Helmer and local sporting heroes will tour UK
schools educating children on the importance of healthy eating.
There will also be the chance to get involved at your local supermarket by collecting three Lions
from egg packs. Each person to send off the Lions along with the special form will not only get a
‘Sporting Eggsellence’ recipe booklet and be entered into a prize draw, they will also be ensuring
an additional donation is made to SPARKS, enabling sick children to benefit at the same time.
SURREY SCHOOLS BADMINTON
ASSOCIATION PRESENTATION EVENING
Again, this year’s presentation evening was
held at Epsom College, but this year, with
increased numbers as we had approximately
150 players and parents. They came to enjoy
some fun competition, socialise with other age
groups, hear about the successes over the
season and join us, the members of the
committee, in congratulating our players on
their achievements both nationally and here
within the county.
Our junior internationals, Ben Beckman (Lower
Kingswood), Max Gardner (Ewell) and Sam Ward
(Lightwater) kindly came to play an exhibition
match for the youngsters to enjoy and to aspire
to. They also helped present the county squad
players with certificates and re-present trophies
won over the last season.
Parents also generously donated various items
for the raffle which were happily received by
winning tickets and smiling faces! The raffle
raised £156!
Thank you to everyone who helped make the
evening a success and to the committee
members who work tirelessly during the year to
give our young players training, guidance,
competition and FUN!
Debbie Honey
ENJOY OUR SHOES
HI-TEC SPORTS WILL AWARD A PAIR OF SWITCHBACK MEN’S OR LADIES SHOES FOR THE
‘STAR’ POSTBAG LETTER HIGHLIGHTED IN EACH EDITION. JUDGES DECISION IS FINAL.
I choose
®
Nano Rally
Nano Flex
Weight: 78g
Head Shape: Square
Shaft/Flex: High HM Graphite
Frame: Wide Profile Graphite
Balance: Head Light
String: Ashaway Rally 21 Micro
Was £100.00
Now £50.00
Nano Force
TECHNOLOGY
Weight: 79g
Head Shape: Regular
Shaft/Flex: Med/Stiff HM Graphite
Balance: Head Light
Was £80.00
Now £40.00
Weight: 81g
Head Shape: Square
Shaft/Flex: Med/Stiff HM Graphite
Balance: Head Heavy
Was £65.00
Now £30.00
Contact Darren Parks,
Events Manager on
01908 268400
darrenparks@badmintonengland.co.uk
COUNTY ROUND-UP
VICTOR SPORTS INTER-COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS
BADMINTON England are pleased to announce new sponsors of the ICC, Victor
Sports. Through partnership with Victor Sports BADMINTON England have been able
to re-introduce a prize fund for the Championships much to the pleasure of the
Counties taking part. The 2006-7 season promises to be a tremendous competition
after a record entry of 121 teams. As is now traditional, despite some of the flak it
seems to provoke, I have risked putting together some predictions.
YORKSHIRE
I know it is a little bit predictable to put them
down as Champions again but how can you
ignore them? Their first team have been
Champions in six out of the last seven years,
their second team have been a force in
Premier B and they are still dominant at Junior
County level having retained the ICT title once
again this year. The high performance centre
at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield
under the tutelage of James Vincent can also
only help to develop Yorkshire talent (although
it is of course not restricted to Yorkshire
players). A combination of skilful players,
a mix of older and younger players, strength in
depth and good leadership looks like a winning
combination to me.
HERTFORDSHIRE
I believe this is the year that Hertfordshire
translate that awesome potential into three
good weekends. If they can really get the first
choice team out then they may just pip
Yorkshire for the title, though I suspect that is
just a bit too much to ask. It has been said
before I know, but just look at some of the
talent potentially available in England players’
Gail Emms, Natalie Munt, Liza Parker and
Suzanne Rayappan plus talented youngsters
such as Kelly Matthews, Rachel Howard and
Katie Comras. Dean George’s move from
Sussex really helps beef up the men and Dean
is going to get better. Hertfordshire are going
to mount a serious challenge this season.
WARWICKSHIRE
After Yorkshire, Warwickshire probably have
the best all round team with a mix of youth
and experience, England stars and strong
County players. Their title in 2004-5 was fully
deserved. But can they get Julia Mann and Jill
Pittard on the court each weekend? They make
a big difference and rarely lose. Of course
Warwickshire can win that title again and since
Yorkshire won their first Premier Division title
in 1999-2000 they are the only other team to
have done so. They must take some confidence
from that but I suspect this will be a good
rather than spectacular season.
GLASGOW & NORTH STRATHCLYDE
Premier B Champions and everyone seems to
be tipping Glasgow to do well in Premier A and
achieve at least a strong fourth place. A bit of
an unknown quantity I believe they will prove
too strong for most of the English teams but
perhaps be a little bit short of experience
against the top quality teams such as
Yorkshire, Hertfordshire and Warwickshire.
ESSEX
A powerful force in the mid 1990’s, Essex are
developing some good young talent such as
Joel Gayle, Caroline Westley and Sarah Walker
nurtured along by quality older players such as
Peter Jeffrey, Alison Pearson, Karina Bryant
and Ian Pearson. Capable of springing a few
surprises in mid-table.
SURREY
Surrey, the old power house of English
badminton, are similar to Essex with a fast
developing group of young stars. However,
apart from Nicola Cavill and Wendy Taylor, they
probably lack some of the experienced hands
that Essex have who can show the youngsters
the way through the tough spots. But if they
can keep them they are going to get better.
Look out for Ben Beckman, son of England’s
Karen Beckman (nee Bridge), Hayley Connor,
Matt Honey and England’s Thomas Cup hero
Chris Langridge.
AVON
A very solid outfit last season, Avon nearly
always win points in every tie through a well
balanced mixture of talented youngsters and
talented older players! Future stars Heather
Olver and Mariana Agathangelou are well
supported by Julie Standley and Wales
International Robyn Ashworth, and Adam
Smith leads the team well, but Avon really
could do with England star Nick Kidd’s
international commitments allowing him to
turn out for them as much as possible.
WORCESTERSHIRE
A tough team to beat, other teams always know
they have been in a scrap and Worcestershire
are trying to get the youngsters to come
through with Kelly Mead and Elena Johnson.
However it is still Tony and Lorraine Cole who
always have to account for a good number of
their points and Olympic Medallist Simon
Archer’s dedication to their cause is a great
bonus - but it is going to be a tough season.
HAMPSHIRE
A great fight back in April saw Hampshire
retain Premier A status and they may well have
enough fire power to avoid the drop for a third
season in a row, but it is going to be tight
between them and Worcestershire. They also
usually manage to spring a surprise package
into the team most seasons, remember the
effective Mei Mei Chan? Last year it was former
England international Sarah Hardaker.
If they have anything up their sleeve for 2006-7
they may well push up the table. However
based on the last few years, another hard
fought campaign is in prospect.
LEICESTERSHIRE
Leicestershire did superbly well to win
promotion to Premier A coming through on the
rails at the last weekend while the teams above
them took points off each other. They have
some strong doubles players who will make the
other teams fight hard but a lack of specialist
singles players and the consequent extra
workload for the top ranked doubles players will
be their Achilles heel.
PREMIER B
It promises to be the best ever Premier B
season and utterly fascinating as three
traditionally strong first teams return from
Division One in Nottinghamshire, Middlesex and
Sussex as well as the emergence of Lanarkshire
who have fought their way up with promotion
each season from Division 5. With the
forthcoming season being the last of the four
up and four down system before reverting to
the two up and two down between the Premier
and Regional Divisions it promises to be a rare
old dog fight. I expect the growing strength of
Buckinghamshire and going up ‘on the bounce’
Nottinghamshire to win promotion.
Contact Sue Shelswell,
National Schools & Junior Clubs Manager on
01908 268400
sueshelswell@badmintonengland.co.uk
SCHOOLS & JUNIORS
GETTING READY FOR THE NEW SEASON…
This is an exciting time of the year for all badminton players,
particularly juniors who are new to the game. I’m sure, like
myself, you’re all setting goals for the season; improving ten
places on last year’s ladder position, representing your school, or
even gaining an invitation to county training. To achieve these
goals we must improve our technical and tactical ability, guided
by our teachers/coaches, and also our physical condition
(fitness).
Maintaining and developing the fitness required for badminton is
not an expensive task. Why not try this fitness practice? All you
need is a volunteer, seven shuttles/markers, an open space and
your racket.
STARTING POSITION
REAR OVERHEAD
LOW NET SHOT
LOW SIDE DEFENCE
Scoring: Ask your volunteer to decide who has won the point at
the end of each “fitness game rally”. If you react speedily to
each instructions and move around the court quickly, you win
the point. If you are slow to react to instructions, or don’t make it
all the way to markers, they win the point. Play each fitness
game up to 15 (just like games in the new inter-school league). As
your fitness improves your volunteer should score fewer points!
Mark out an area as shown above, the area is approximately half
a singles court. Ask your volunteer to stand at the front of the
“court” and point to the different markers.
You must move to each marker quickly, using as few steps as
possible, play the appropriate shot, and return to the start point.
Just before you arrive back at the start point, your volunteer
should point to the next marker, which you swiftly move towards,
play the next shot, and so on.
Duration: 1. Volunteer points to ten markers, and then allow you
to rest for 15-20 seconds (the length of time between points in a
match). This length of exercise will help you to develop your
anaerobic fitness - the energy system used by the body for short
bursts of activity. You’ll notice you start to sweat and will be
breathing heavily during this exercise. 2. Volunteer points to
twenty or thirty markers, followed by a 40-45 second rest period
- this will help to develop your aerobic capacity, the energy
system which kicks-in as the anaerobic system fades.
This game is tailored to badminton’s demands. It helps develop
reaction time, as you respond to your volunteers racket,
anaerobic fitness (sets of ten), aerobic fitness (sets of
twenty/thirty), as well as your speed and agility, as you practice
the movements you will need on court.
Before you start this practice warm-up thoroughly and complete
some stretches on the move (dynamic stretches), as you would in
your PE lessons. Drinks breaks are essential between the fitness
games, as is cooling-down after training.
Good luck!
Justyn Price
Volunteer and Development Co-ordinator
Justyn has a first class honours degree in Sport in the
Community from Durham University. He is a Speed Agility
Quickness trainer and works with the New Forest District Cricket
Association on fitness and conditioning.
NATIONAL RANKINGS
NATIONALRANKINGS 2006
1
2
MENS Andrew
Nicholas
KIDD
SINGLES SMITH
09
Hampshire
World No 44
World No 30
3
Rajiv
Middlesex
Avon
4
Aamir
Middlesex
5
Nathan
Buckinghamshire
OUSEPH
GHAFFAR
RICE
World No 95
World No 43
World No 77
1
MENS Robert
DOUBLES BLAIR
Leicestershire
2
Anthony
Nottinghamshire
CLARK
Blair & Clark
World No 10
Clark & Blair
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
NATIONALRANKINGS 2006
1
2
WOMENS Tracey
Elizabeth
CANN
SINGLES HALLAM
09
Staffordshire
3
Julia
Warkwickshire
Jersey
World No 9
World No 49
4
Jill
5
Rachel
Warkwickshire
Hertfordshire
MANN
PITTARD
HOWARD
World No 48
World No 55
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
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THE SCORING DEBATE
CONTINUES
Back in early May this year, Colmers Farm
adult club and our junior section South
Birmingham Juniors, held an U12, U14, and
U16 junior tournament at Colmers Leisure
Centre in Rednal, Birmingham.
Having attended similar junior tournaments
throughout the year, we decided to use the
new rally point score system for the U14
and U16 age groups. We wanted to ensure
our tournament was controlled and had a
different format for the seventy-five
players throughout the day, so we chose to
use the new system, explaining the rules to
the players before each age group started.
We provided scorers on each court, to
assist the players, but they soon grasped
the scoring, realising that if they lost the
serve, they lost the point. This made the
games really enjoyable to play and watch.
It’s great that the IBF have approved the
system - we as junior club organisers are
totally behind the new system, there is so
much enjoyment by players and
supporters alike.
Our club are definitely looking forward to
the new points scoring system. This scoring
system can really excite the badminton
game, on and off courts, with more
recognition for our top game of badminton.
Phillip Darlow
Head Coach, South Birmingham Juniors
The new scoring system described in June
2006's Badminton Magazine will make the
game less attractive to ordinary club
players.I agree with the idea of games
going to 21 points and every rally resulting
in a point, but the new system has a fatal
flaw that will damage the game.
I have played club badminton for over fifty
years and for Berkshire veterans for over
ten years. I was, until I retired, a university
professor researching and teaching
management. These different experiences
tell me that the new system will create
problems for club players. The difficulty is
that in addition to remembering the score,
players have to remember on which side
they were at the start of the previous rally,
because the score does not tell players
where to stand.
Under the present system all we have to
remember is the score and that is too much
for some players in close games. Even if
players do manage to remember where
they were standing at the start of the rally,
doing so is an added distraction from
concentrating on the game. It will lead to
disputes and arguments and make
badminton less attractive for literally
hundreds of ordinary club players.
The solution is to change the new system
so the score tells the players which court
they should be in and who is to serve. The
way to do that is to have rules that say:
When their score is even players stand in the
courts they started in and when their score is
odd they stand in the opposite courts from
where they started. This is the same as at
present, which in itself is a distinct
advantage. Serving always starts from the
right hand court.
The great advantage of this is that players
only have to remember the score. It tells
them where to stand and who is to serve.
In the game used in the magazine to
illustrate the new system my suggested
rules share the serving and receiving to
exactly the same extent as does the
proposed system. It has the great
advantage that players do not have to
remember where they were stood at the
start of the previous rally.
No doubt with an umpire to remind them
where to stand players will always be in the
right place. But most club games do not
have an umpire and the new system will
make the game less attractive especially to
people learning the game.
John Bennett
The new scoring system is likely to come
into force for the Southampton and District
Badminton Association this season starting
Sept 2006.
In the meantime my club has been trying it
out for the past few weeks. Although the
system is quite straight forward and
explained well in the recent Badminton
Magazine, one problem arises which the
system does not address. When a long rally
is played it is often difficult to remember
where the players were and where they need
to be for serving and to receive serve (as a
result there will be a number of disputes and
arguments particularly for the receiving of
the next serve).
The problem goes as follows – “you were in
the left court when we started this long
rally so you should stay there as we were
serving and won the point.” The reply is “no
I wasn't I was in the right court.” How can
we have a system that causes such
problems. Clearly the International
Badminton Federation and BADMINTON
England have not considered this, they have
only looked at this problem in terms of the
international game and television.
I used to play a lot of table tennis in the
past and that system was rally points up to
21 and worked well with no confusion at all.
Each player in doubles had five serves and
always started from the right court. When
the serve was over it passed to the
opponents who in turn had five serves.
If this was adopted in badminton each
player would know that they would be
getting at least five serves and there would
be no confusion with position. All in all a
much better system and one which should
be considered for club badminton and
maybe international badminton.
Bob Collier
Southampton District Badminton
Association
Whilst I am daft enough to continue playing
with the temperature approaching the 90’s,
I realise that many players consider the
summer to be the close season for
badminton. Now therefore seems an
appropriate time to consider the new look
scoring system.
Being basically conservative by nature and
having been totally opposed to the 5 x 7
scheme mooted a year or so ago I was
initially lacking in enthusiasm for yet
another scoring initiative. However having
now played several games using the 3 x 21
rally point system I have, to a degree at
least, changed my opinion. Indeed as far as
singles are concerned while willing to use
either system, I am now perfectly happy
with the new method. However as far as
doubles are concerned for some reason I
still prefer 3 x 15 scoring. I am not sure why
this is the case but I think it has to do with
having two hands of serving not just the
one. No doubt playing 3 x 21 on a regular
basis will make it more acceptable, but
having used the old system for more years
than I care to think about this may take
some time. I would be glad to know what
other older players think of the new system.
I must say I am not convinced that the
3 x 21 system will lead to a glut of television
coverage, but we shall just have to wait
and see.
As a matter of interest, I understood that
until 29-all a gap of two points was needed
to win a game. However in the report on
the 2006 U17 tournament (Badminton
Magazine June 2006) two final scores
were shown as 21-20. Is this a misprint or
have I misunderstood the mechanics of the
new system?
This was under the old system where no
setting was allowed.
Ian Garden
NATIONAL
BADMINTON WEEK
14 – 22 OCTOBER 2006
As part of this campaign, with the other three home nations, BADMINTON
England is running a host of badminton-related activities to celebrate NATIONAL
BADMINTON WEEK.
Schools, sports clubs, shopping centres
and even medial centres will all be taking
part in special events that include open
days, competitions, teachers versus
students matches, matches for the
disabled, and “give it a go” sessions in
shopping centres and leisure centres.
We are asking all clubs and members to
support this effort, by getting involved.
Ask your local Badminton Development
Officer for details of what is going on in
your area.
1 minute rally challenge
This challenge is to be played within
the spirit of the game of badminton, to
have fun and to contribute to charity!
The Challenge must take place between
the 14th and 22nd October 2006. Open to
anyone. There are two age groups –
Under 18 and Over 18.
How to take part
play, the score stands at the last
successful shot. If this happens within
the 1 minute rally, play can continue
starting from this score until the end of
the period.
The time allowed for each challenge
attempt in total is 5 minutes, but up to
only three attempts in this time period.
A continuous rally playing period is 60
seconds only.
Each official attempt to take part in
the challenge is £1 per pair per 5
minutes. Payment due to the organiser
before the challenge is started.
Any funds raised will be distributed to
the NSPCC and the local county (where
an agreement is made)
A full set of rules is available from
BADMINTON England development
department:
development@badmintonengland.co.uk
Appoint a third party who will be your
scorer. Find yourselves a badminton
court, with net and lines.
Results to be emailed to Emily Weller
emilyweller@badmintonengland.co.uk
who will put them on the BADMINTON
England web site
The challenge is for two people to see
how many times they can hit a shuttle
over the net between them in 60
seconds. When striking the shuttle, both
feet must remain on or behind the
service line.
Prize will be offered to the top 10 highest
scorers i.e. 5 pairs in each age group.
The prize will include an invitation to
the National Badminton Centre,
Milton Keynes
The count begins with the strike of the
shuttle in play (or service). The final
count must be the last time the shuttle
passed over the net before the 60
seconds elapse. If the shuttle lands on the
floor at any time or is deemed out of
Can you beat the Elite?
Anthony Clark and Kristian Roebuck
– 143
Gail Emms and Donna Kellogg
- 153
5MINUTEBREAK
BADMINTON ENGLAND IN THE MEDIA
Badminton got involved in Sport Relief
2006 in a family game show called Get
Sub’d that was aired during Sport Relief
week in July. Squad members Suzanne
Rayappan, Julia Mann, Eleanor Cox and
Dean George went to Pinewood studios
where the filming took place to help with
a game called Shuttle Shock! The game
was such a success that it was included in
the final.
Thanks also to Ishmail and Andy who
worked with the BBC on the pilot project.
Both Nathan and Gail appeared on
Question of Sport in May and June
respectively. Nathan was also spotted as
the Mystery Guest visiting Bletchley Park
in July.
BBC Look East covered 2 articles about
player funding and the 2012 Roadshow.
MVP cup was shown on Sky Sports and
Sky Sports News.
TICKETS OF THE WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIPS IN MADRID
For all details about the World
Championships including the booking and
availability of tickets visit the official
website www.06worlds.com
SODUKU (MEDIUM)
Each row, column and 3x3 cell must
contain the numbers 1 to 9 with no
duplicates in order to solve the puzzle.
Simply fill in the blanks!
1
3
4
7
2
1
3
7
8
6
The BBC is looking for groups of children
who would like to take part in a TV
programme. Group Glitch will be part of a
daily live children’s breakfast show called
Level Up, which will be simulcast on BBC2
and CBBC.
Group Glitch is designed to give a
struggling group of children help with a
challenge or problem they may be having
as a group... For example they recently
filmed a girl’s football team who had
never won a game who asked Group
Glitch for help. They called in a
professional player to give them some
tips on improving their skills and a
coaching session.
Target is children between 8-12 years old
who would like some help getting them
on track for upcoming matches or a big
tournament or competition.
Do you know of any teams who would like
to get involved? Contact Gerry Cronin on
marketing@badmintonengland.co.uk. We
will put all the teams forward to the BBC
for consideration.
DID YOU KNOW?
Let’s compare a Wimbledon final to a world
championship final in badminton. In 1985
in the Wimbledon Men’s singles final Boris
Becker defeated Kevin Curran 6-3, 6-7, 7-6,
3
2 8
1
9 4 1
2 8 5
3
7 5
2
8
5
9
2
5
8
4
9
4
8
6-4 and the match lasted 198 minutes. In
1985 the World Badminton Championships
Men’s Singles final match was between
Han Jian of China and Morten Frost of
Denmark. Han Jian won 14-18, 15-10, 15-8
and the match lasted 76 minutes.
Doesn't look good for badminton right?
WRONG! The actual amount of times the
ball or shuttlecocks were in play was 18
minutes and 37 minutes respectively.
Breaking it down further, in the tennis
game there were 299 rallies and in
badminton 146, 1004 shots compared
with 1972 in badminton, giving a shots
per rally average of 3.4 for tennis and
13.5 for badminton.
The actual time the ball/shuttle was in
flight, divided by the length of the match
is called the match intensity. For tennis it
was 9% and the badminton was an
impressive 48%!
The distance the tennis player covered
was about 2 miles, and the badminton
player 4 miles. So the badminton player
ran TWICE as far in under half the time.
This just goes to show how tough
badminton is. Tennis is a great game and
most people understand the athletic
endeavours involved in playing at the top
level. From this example we can see that
badminton athletes need to be in worldclass condition.
According to scientific experts
(Department of Physical Education at
Baylor University) badminton is one of
the finest conditioning game activities.
During a typical 3 game match, lasting 45
minutes the shuttle will be in play for 20
minutes. In this time the player will make
at least 350 changes of direction of 90°
or more and strike the shuttle about 400
times. About 150 of these stokes will be
full arm swings (with the racket, of
course). Major league pitchers frequently
have less arm swings than this in a game.
Pulse rate can increase from 72 to 125 for
a person in normal condition.
SENIORS INTERNATIONAL
TOURNAMENT 2006
An international team tournament will take
place at Folkstone Sports Centre from 9th
to the 10th November 2006 between
England, Denmark, Germany, The
Netherlands, Scotland and Sweden. This
seniors event is for Over 40’s, Over 45’s
and Over 50’s and will comprise one men’s
doubles, one ladies’ doubles and one mixed
doubles in each of the three age groups.
For further details contact Sue Whetnall
on 01474 852374.
Send your news to :
marketing@badmintonengland.co.uk

Badminton Magazine

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