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November 2013

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We extend our deepest gratitude to all who have supported Badminton Monthly, a magazine that will promote the sport and serve the badminton community in North America and beyond.

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2 Badminton Monthly November 2013

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If there are any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at editorial@badmintonmonthly.com. Thanks! www.badmintonmonthly.com 83

November 2013

CONTENTS

2 Pledge Results

24~27

Thank you for your support

4 Letter From the Editor 5~8 Love All Play

-XXVIII Brazil International 2013 Golds for US MD and MXD -US Loses Young Talent -21st Annual Smash Bash Doubles Tournament (Mesa, Arizona) -High School Students Raise $1,255 for Charity (Fremont, California) -5th Annual KTSF Badminton Tournament (Burlingame, CA) -Aileen Primero Memorial Tournament (Tucson, Arizona) -UC Berkeley Smashapalooza VIII (Berkeley, CA) -UC Davis Fall Open 2013 (Davis, CA)

14~18

Lin Dan Special Interview 24~27

Pan Am Jr. Championships Golden in Mexico “The Future is Bright” by Lee Yan 28~33

Summer Universiade

Team USA competed for the first time Experience report by Team USA 62~77

Jump Smash

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

Skill Feature 34~45

58~61

Front court

by Kowi Chandra

Doubles serve

by Jing Yu Hong

Footwork

Doubles Skills

9~23 Intl. Game Results 2013 World Championships China Masters Japan Open

19 Road to Rio

by Eva Lee

46~50 Christianna’s Athletic Edge Love Your Hamstrings

51 Badminton 2 Cents

What’s your pet peeve with your partner when you play doubles?

52~57 Badminton Workouts Hit and Move Fast!

78~79 Event Schedule/Directory 80 Evenings with Coach Dick Ng From Burma to the US

81 My Badminton Life

by Jack Forbes Actor/Lawyer/Writer enjoys badminton

82 Junior Player Spot Light Lauren Lam (10) “I am a Fighter”

ON THE COVER Photo gallery of local and international events. www.badmintonmonthly.com 3

EDITOR’S NOTE

November 2013

We Record YOUR History!

W

elcome to Badminton Monthly! I am very excited and honored to announce the birth of our new magazine to the badminton community.

This collective work is in your hands because of all the people who have supported us over the last nine months.

I cannot find words to describe how thankful I am to our community.

The badminton community in the US has been growing.

We will try to cover every segment of this community as much as we can. Without you playing or training badminton, the sport may not be as popular as it is today. The fact that badminton community has been ignored by the mainstream US media most of the time encouraged us to create this magazine. So, thank you so much for playing and building this special community.

I thought about creating a badminton publication more than four years ago while working as a full-time journalist for several small paper companies and as a part-time badminton coach. Over the years, my desire to contribute to the badminton community has grown.

We are in the midst of a revolutionary digital age but we decided to move forward with the print version of Badminton Monthly. We strongly believe in the power of a printed publication. This magazine will be very personal; covering local tournaments, every-day recreational players, offering skill features, an educational but fun manga and much more. A print magazine is tangible. It preserves records and memories forever, while a digital one doesn’t. Most of us don’t write these days, but we type every day. Most of us don’t flip pages but tap a screen instead. After all this digital writing and reading experience, there is nothing left on your lap or coffee table. Imagine, one day you discover Badminton Monthly from the box and find the picture of you playing badminton taken decades ago. You immediately show it off to your family and friends. You made history and it is recorded on paper right here.

Our hope is to record your amazing badminton story. Forever.

Kota Morikawa Editor-in-chief kota@badmintonmonthly.com

Publisher: Dwight Sung Associate Publisher: James Young Marketting Director: Sophia Law Editor-in-Chief: Kota Morikawa Managing Editor: Joy Ma Art Director: Elizabeth Sung Photography: Derick Santos Manga: Rocket Mango

Badminton Monthly is published monthly in the USA. Copyright 2013 by Badminton Monthly, Inc. at 1482 Oddstad Drive, Redwood City, CA 94063, all rights reserved.

Subscription rate for US is $59.88 per year. If postal service is unable to deliver, we have no further obligation unless we receive corrected address within six months.

POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Badminton Monthly, Inc., 1482 Oddstad Drive, Redwood City, CA 94063. Any and all material in this publication must not be reproduced in any form without permission. Requests for permission should be directed to editorial@badmintonmonthly.com. Customer service and subscriptions please visit www.badmintonmonthly.com or write us at Badminton Monthly, 1482 Oddstad Drive, Redwood City, CA 94063.

As with any sport and fitness activities, injuries may occur when playing badminton.

Badminton Monthly will not be liable to any injuries caused from the stretches, exercises or training described in any of our magazines or website. To avoid injuries, we recommend training with a specialist and consulting with doctors and other experts in the field.

4 Badminton Monthly November 2013

LOVE ALL PLAY [ NEWS, RESULTS, GEAR and MORE ]

Victorious in Sao Paulo USA Wins Two Golds XXVIII Brazil International 2013 October 2-6, Sao Paulo, Brazil

by Kota Morikawa Photographs: OCBC

Phillip Chew of Team USA cruised past all the opponents he played at the XXVIII Brazil International 2013, winning two gold medals in Men’s events with Sattawat Pongnairat, and Mixed Doubles with Jamie Subandhi.

In the Men’s Doubles, Chew/Pongnairat defeated Brazil’s Number 1 team of Hugo Arthuso/Alex Yuwan Tjong in three games (12-21, 21-13, 21-15). Meanwhile, Chew/ Subandhi successfully defended their 2012 Mixed Doubles title over the tournament singles champions Chih Hsun Yang of Taipei and Michelle Li of Canada in two games (21-13, 21-19).

Pongnairat won the bronze medal in Men’s Singles losing to Osleni Guerrero (BWF Rank 67) of Cuba in the semi-finals (21-16, 14-21, 21-10). Subandi took bronze in Women’s Singles, as she battled Brazil’s young star Lohaynny Vicente, who won the U19 Pan Am Junior Championships this July defeating Christine Yang of the US in the final in three sets game. Subandi played hard but fell in three games (21-11, 18-21, 21-16).

2013 Brazil International Badminton Cup Men’s Doubles winners (picture above). Sattawat Pongnairat (left on top of podium) and Phillip Chew (right to Pongnairat) won golds. Coach Don Chew on the far left.

2013 Brazil Intl Badminton Cup Mixed Doubles winners (picture right). Phillip Chew (left on top of podium) and Jamie Subandi (right to Chew) defended their title in 2012.

US Loses Young Talent Karyn Velez to Car Accident

by Kota Morikawa

Karyn Velez at Yonex Canada Open in 2011.

(Photograph: Badmintonphoto)

Karyn Velez, one of the US representatives in the Sudirman Cup event this year, died in a car accident in Manila, Philippines on August 12. She was 25.

Velez was born in the US and moved to the Philippines where she started to play badminton and became ranked #1 in the country. Later, she was invited to train in Malaysia, and finally moved back to the US. Velez competed in numerous international tournaments representing the US since 2009 and won third place in the Women’s Singles at the Pan Am Badminton Championships last year.

She had the highest BWF rank of 67. Her last match in her international circuit was the first round of Women’s Singles at the 2013 Yonex Canada Open on July 17 against Ayumi Mine of Japan. www.badmintonmonthly.com 5

LOVE ALL PLAY [News] High School Students Raise $1,255 for Charity Aug. 10, Fremont, California

by Kota Morikawa

A group of high school students staged a badminton tournament on August 10 for charity, with the purpose of gaining an experience of the other side of tournaments. More than 100 people competed in the doubles- and mixed doubles-only tournament with B, C, and D levels, which was held at the California Badminton Academy in Fremont. They were able to raise a total of $1,255 for the American Red Cross Disaster Fund.

“After going through years of training and tournaments and meeting so many new people through badminton, we have learned to love the sport and

Anresco Praetorians Crowned for Corporate Game 5th Annual KTSF Badminton Tournament Sept. 7, Burlingame, CA

by Dwight Sung With more than 140 participants in this year’s KTSF Badminton Tournament for amateurs and high school students, the heat was on at Bay Badminton Center in Burlingame on September 7. There were 10 corporate/amateur teams and four high school teams.

The high school teams began their day with three rounds of round-robin contests to determine their seeding before entering a tightly-contested playoff bracket. At the end of the day, Team Bubble won first place, followed by Team Phoenix in second.

In third place was C.K. Junior Team, which was able to defeat Team Drive By! Meanwhile, on the corporate/amateur side, 10 teams were broken up into two groups where they fought a highly-contested round robin. As the hours wore on, the action heated up with four talented teams working their way into the group A playoff bracket: Anresco Praetorians, Birdie Crush, Team Alpha and Bad Minion. The four teams had a tough battle before Anresco Praetorians finally came out on top to become the champions of the corporate/amateur teams. Birdie Crush was second while Team Alpha rounded out the top three spots.

6 Badminton Monthly November 2013

wanted to spread our passion to other players,” Stephanie Lam, one of two tournament directors said. “We felt that the players who participated in the tournament were able to go through some of the same experiences that the badminton community gave to us, such as playing with good players and meeting new people.”

Lam and Christine Yang, the other director, have played competitively for years, mainly in the junior circuit, and represented the U.S. for the Junior Pan Am Tournament in late July.

“We would definitely do it again because it was a good experience for us to learn about the flip side of tournaments,” said Lam. ”It helped us appreciate all the work done by people who run tournaments such as Junior Nationals.”

Tournament Directors Stephanie Lam (far left) and Christine Yang (far right) with D Men Doubles winners. (Photo Courtesy of Don Lam)

The remaining six teams continued to battle as well in the amateur level B-group in which Snow Leopard took home first place. Badminton Monthly came in second, Mass Mutual and Faith Realty and Finance finished with third and fourth places respectively.

Congratulations to all the winners of the tournament, and we at Badminton Monthly would like to thank KTSF and the sponsors of the 5th Annual KTSF Badminton Tournament for running such a wonderful and successful tournament. We would also like to thank Bay Badminton Center for organizing the event fairly and professionally. A wonderful job by everyone that was involved!

The 5th Annual KTSF Badminton Tournament at Bay Badminton Center in Burlingame, California, brought excitement and joy to its participants

[News, Results] LOVE ALL PLAY UC Berkeley Smashapalooza VIII Aug. 17-18, Berkeley, CA Photographs: UC Berkeley Badminton Club

A Men’s Singles winners. Jeffrey Kuo (left) and Raju Rai. Results

Men’s Singles A

B

C

D

1. Raju Rai 2. Jeffrey Kuo 1. Jan Banquiles 2. Chetan Potu 1. Darren Lo 2. Gokul Kalyanasundaram 1. Julian Kwan 2. Van Pham

Women’s Singles A

B

C

D

1. Kerry Xu 2. Priscilla Long 1. Cindy Yuan 2. Karen Ma 1. Michelle Zhang 2. Bianca Tam 1. Jasmine Lee 2. Angela Wu

Men’s Doubles

A 1. Howard Bach/Bo Zhao 2. Terrance Pang/Andy Quach B 1. Ken P/Peter Yam

C

D

A Men’s Doubles winners. From far left, Terrance Pang, Andy Quach, Howard Bach and Bo Zhao

2. Ryan Ang/Max Zhang 1. Peter Chen/Justin Cheng 2. Darren Lo/Stephen Ding 1. Emil Kurian/Wilson Yu 2. Nabin Lin/Jonathan Siu

Women’s Doubles A

B

C

D

1. Thuy Hoang/Daphne Ng 2. Sharon Ng/Danae Long 1. Cally Chung/Stephanie Lam 2. Priscilla Long/Madeline Sporkert 1. Cindy Yuan/Michelle Zhang 2. Christine Wang/Lucy Wang 1. Jasmine Lee/Bianca Tam 2. Chew Chai/Roshni Iyer

Mixed Doubles A

B

C

D

1. Raju Rai/Jingyu Hong 2. Kyle Emerick/Thuy Hoang 1. Justin Ma/Cally Chung 2. Mason Jiang/Annie Xu 1. Andrew Tran/Lisa Chang 2. Long Trinh/Jennifer Yip 1. Nabin Lin/Nancy Mei 2. Tri Tran/Jessica Soong

A Mixed Doubles winners (picture above). From far left, Raju Rai, Jing Yu Hong, Thuy Hoang and Kyle Emerick

UC Davis Fall Open 2013 Oct. 5-6, Davis, CA Results

Mixed Doubles

A

B

C

D

1. Yoga Pramata 2. Sittichai Viboonsin 3. Pratik Patel 1. Jan Banquiles 2. Gokul Kalyanasundaran 3. Gumaro Diaz 1. Gokul Kalyanasundaram 2. Stephen Ding 3. Joshua Dao 1. Mason Jiang 2. Karthik Kalyanasundaram 3. Eric Jiang

Men’s Doubles

B

C

D

1. Madeline Sporkert 2. Christine Yu 3. Tracy Chu 1. Christine Yu 2. Jenny Gai 3. Bianca Tam 1. Maalveka Ilango 2. Carmen Chung 3. Martina Reyes

Men’s Singles

Women’s Singles

A

B

C

D

1. Kyle Emerick/Thuy Hoang 2. Serge Blanchet/Daphne Ng 3. Derek Chen/Tiffany Chu 1. Derek Chen/Tiffany Chu 2. Dan Nguyen/Kimvan Nguyen 3. Quyen Nguyen/Chloe Chow 1. Kevin Hui/Vivian Dien 2. Danie Liu/Alice Liu 3. Mason Jiang/Madeline Sporkert 1. Ger Thao/Yer Thao 2. Hien Pham/Duong Tran 3. Timothy Lo/Lillian Tran

A

B

C

1. Holvy de Pauw/Sittichai Viboonsin 2. Pratik Patel/Yoga Pratama 1. Justin Ma/Timothy Lam 2. Sarah Chan/Jingyu Hong 1. Nathan Lo/Gary Wu 2. Calvin Dai/Ming Cheng 3. Joseph Bui/Jacky Lui

B

C

1. Tiffany Chu/Amanda Ho 2. Tiffany Chua/Helena Wong 3. Fiona Lai/Tiffany Jianto 1. Shu Shu Hsia/Lucy Wang

Women’s Doubles

Final of Men’s Singles fought between Yoga Pramata and Sittichai Viboonsin attracted many spectators as both competitors showed their international level of game. www.badmintonmonthly.com 7

LOVE ALL PLAY [News, Results] University of Arizona Badminton Club Hosts Its Annual Event Aileen Primero Memorial Tournament Sept. 28, Tucson, Arizona

by Rae Wu, special to Badminton Monthly Since 2009, the University of Arizona’s Badminton Club has hosted the annual Aileen Primero Memorial Tournament, to honor the life of Aileen Primero, who was a local badminton player, UA student and member of the Alpha Phi Gamma sorority. Sadly in 2007, her life was tragically cut short when she was involved in a road traffic accident. The proceeds of this tournament go toward a University of Arizona scholarship in her name, the Aileen Rose Esteban Primero Scholarship, which is awarded by the Alpha Phi Gamma’s Delta Chapter to an individual who shares her diligence and leadership potential.

This year, with a change in the club administration, the focus was to bring badminton to the wider community outside the

Mixed Doubles husband and wife team Theo and Steve Hashimoto take the crown (Photograph: badmintontucson.com)

badminton clubs of Tucson, as well as host the regular high-quality doubles tournament the players have come to expect. Club President Sierra Fung hosted a mini tournament in addition to the main event for the members of Aileen’s sorority and friends to participate in. The result was a resounding success with 40 extra players coming to try their hand at playing badminton. They were given shuttlecocks and racquets and everyone played in a small tournament in which trophies were awarded to the finalists. This will hopefully introduce more people to this wonderful sport and after watching the more experienced players play take it up.

The main tournament is split into Intermediate and Advanced Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles. The tournament follows a round-robin format of leagues with the top two of each division playing each other to reach the finals.

The men’s intermediates of Abdul Rana and Stephen Li retained their crown from last year, while newcomers Bheo Guanzon Jr. and Sanjeev Manandhar battled hard for second place. Giao Quach and Mark Tsang fulfilled their potential after many years of participating in the men’s advanced category by beating the strong partnership of Rob Waters and Saburo Sakai following some very tough rallies. Top women’s doubles seeds Monica Xiong and Jill Yang showed great determination as they worked hard to beat the new partnership of Nga Le and Chandler Begay. The mixed doubles had a great turn out this year, and saw husband and wife Theo and Steve Hashimoto take the crown, beating the skillful duo of An Nguyen and Doug Towne Results Intermediate Men’s Doubles with an enthralling final.

1. Stephen Li/Abdul Rana It was a great event and many 2. Bheo Guanzon Jr./Sanjeev Manandhar Advanced Men’s Doubles thanks to the University of 1. Giao Quach/Mark Tsang Arizona Badminton Club (Sierra, 2. Saburo Sakai/Rob Waters Doubles Stephanie, Nico and Monica) for Women’s 1. Monica Badz Xiong/Jill Yang 2.

Nga Le/Chandler Begay once again hosting a fun, social Mixed Doubles and successful tournament.

1. Theo Hashimoto/Steve Hashimoto 2. An Nguyen/Doug Towne

HS Players Witness Open Games 21st Annual Smash Bash Doubles Tournament Sept. 7, Mesa, Arizona

by Guy Chadwick, Special to Badminton Monthly

School is back in session and the local high school girls’ badminton season is underway. The SMASH BASH tournament, from its origin more than 20 years ago, was designed to expose high school players to higher-level tournament action. Not only do they get lots of play in their Varsity and Junior Varsity (JV) divisions, but they also play in the Open Women’s division for free and see players competing in the Open Men’s. For many high school girls, this tournament is the first time they see and experience adult tournament play.

This year’s SMASH BASH, hosted at the Arizona Badminton Center, saw the high school players each play 8–11 doubles matches within the round-robin Olympic style format. The Women’s and Men’s divisions also used a round-robin format to ensure lots of matches to graduate to the championship rounds.

After nine hours of non-stop play with 70 matches, the doubles champions were crowned in each of the divisions.

8 Badminton Monthly November 2013

From left to right: Steve Hashimoto (MD Champion), Kiyoko Hashimoto (VD & WD Champion), Bui Hoang (MD Champion), Monica Xiong (WD Champion), Naren Koka (MD 2nd), Kai-Ning Khor (WD 2nd), Vaishnavi Koka (VD Champion, WD 2nd), Seigo Hashimoto (MD 2nd) (Photograph: Guy Chadwick)

A NEW WAVE OF CHAMPIONS 2013 World Championships

by Dwight Sung Photographs: Badmintonphoto

T

his year’s world championships has proven, if anything, that the power balance of badminton is undergoing another shift with more countries involved in the semi-finals than at any of the previous world championships in the past five years. Hard-working youngsters have learned to adapt and play headto-head with powerhouse China and, in the process, created an exciting time for badminton. Women’s singles new champion Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand is a gleaming example that hard work, talent, smartness, and more hard work can pave the way for dreams coming true.

18-year-old Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand won her first women’s singles title at the 2013 World Championships.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 9

2013 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS August 5–11, 2013 Guangzhou, China

F

or just the second time, China Badminton Association hosted the BWF 2013 World Championships, held in Guangzhou from August 5 to 11 with 345 players from 49 different countries competing in the five individual events.

While China still remains the powerhouse country, coming away with eight medals in total (including two golds), this year’s World Championships had a good showing from many countries with Indonesia (two) and Thailand (one) each claiming their own gold medals and South Korea claiming a total of four medals of their own.

In this last major tournament of the summer, the 20th World Championship certainly featured a lot of sizzling battles with history being made at many of the finals.

(above) The US women’s doubles pair Eva Lee (behind) and Paula Lynn O’banana advanced to the second round but lost to fourth-seeded Denmark pair Christinna Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl.

Women’s Doubles Top-seeded Chinese pair Xiaoli Wang and Yang Yu took on the South Korean pair of Hye Won Eom and Ye Na Jang. This in itself was a breath of fresh air as the last eight women’s doubles finals had been a China vs. China affair. The South Korean team did not disappoint, winning the second match with great net play and defense before the Chinese pair were able to power their way through to completely dominate the third match, 21-8. The win gave Yu Yang the distinction of becoming the only woman to win three consecutive women’s doubles titles at the world championships.

World number one Wang Xiaoli (behind) and Yu Yang of China raced through their second threeset match to crown their second championship in women’s doubles.

2013 World Championships Guangzhou, China August 5–11, 2013 US Players at a Glance Men’s Singles Howard Shu 1st Rd. Lost 16-21 16-21 Toby Penty (England) Sattawat Pongnairat 1st Rd. Lost 6-21 9-21 Lin Dan (China)

Women’s Singles Jamie Subandhi 1st Rd. Won Walkover Aiying Xing (Singapore) 2nd Rd. Lost 12-21 9-21 Porntip Buranaprasertsuk (Thailand)

Men’s Doubles Phillip Chew Sattawat Pongnairat 1st Rd. Lost 14-21 21-23 10-21 Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari (Malaysia)

Women’s Doubles Eva Lee Paula Lynn O’banana 1st Rd. Won 22-20 17-21 21-13 Yuliya Kazarinova Anna Kobceva (Ukraine) 2nd Rd. Lost 9-21 15-21 Christinna Pedersen Kamilla Rytter Juhl (Denmark) Rulan Yeh Rulien Yeh 1st Rd. Lost 6-21 8-21 Tatjana Bibik Anastasia Chervaykova (Russia)

Mixed Doubles Phillip Chew Jamie Subandhi 1st Rd. Lost 10-21 16-21 Baek Choel Shin Hye Won Eom (Korea) 10 Badminton Monthly November 2013

(above) Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand won over world number one Li Xuerui of China in the women’s singles final. Intanon became the youngest champion of BWF World Badminton Championships, at the age of 18.

(right) Sattawat Pongnairat of the US lost to Lin Dan in the first round of men’s singles with a score of 21-6, 21-9.

(below) Third-seeded Tontowi Ahmad (right) and Lilyana Natsir of Indonesia stunned the world number one pair Xu Chen and Ma Jin in the mixed doubles final.

Women’s Singles This was one for the history books, as first-seeded Xuerui Li of China competed against the fourth-seeded Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand. Intanon was able to come back from a 19-12 deficit and overcoming three match points before defeating Li 22-20.

Unflustered, Li came back to win the second match in a tight 21-18 game before Intanon came storming back and won the third match, 21-14. Becoming the youngest player ever to win a world championship gold, she is also the first Thai player to win a finals match, and the first non-Chinese women’s singles player to win since 1999.

Mixed Doubles History continued to be made in the mixed doubles round where top-seeded Chinese pair Xu Chen and Ma Jin battled third-seeded Indonesians Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir. This was the tenth meeting between the two pairs with six wins from the Chinese pair. While both men partners had previously won bronze, both women already had previous gold medals under their belts. The Indonesians were able to blow past the Chinese in the first match 21-13, before falling in the second match after a tiring rally and amazing defense by the Chinese pair, 16-21. The Indonesians were able to regroup and tap their reserve energy (this after defeating the number two seed the night before in a stunning match lasting one hour and 13 minutes) and pull off a 22-20 win over the Chinese pair. The win gave Natsir the distinction of being the first woman to win three world championship titles in mixed doubles. www.badmintonmonthly.com 11

2013 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS August 5–11, 2013 Guangzhou, China

World Championships 2013 Guangzhou, China August 5-11 Men’s Singles Lee Chong Wei

21-8 17-21 22-20

(MALAYSIA) 21-6 21-9

Tommy Sugiarto (INDONESIA)

Pengyu Du

20-22 21-12 21-15

(CHINA) 16-21 22-20 21-15

16-21 21-13 20-17 (retired)

Tien Minh Nguyen (VIETNAM)

Jan O Jorgensen

21-17 21-15

(DENMARK)

21-13 22-20

Kashyap Parupalli

Dan Lin (CHINA)

Long Chen

(INDIA)

(CHINA)

Women’s Singles Xuerui Li

21-18 20-22 21-15

(CHINA) 27-25 21-12

Tzu Ying Tai (TAIWAN)

21-5 21-11

Saina Nehwal

(INDIA) 23-21 21-9

22-20 18-21 21-14

Carolina Marin (SPAIN)

Ratchanok Intanon

21-10 21-13

(THAILAND) 21-18 21-17

Shixian Wang (CHINA)

Sindhu P. V.

Yeon Ju Bae

(KOREA)

(INDIA)

Men’s Doubles Lee/Tsai

21-13 11-21 21-17

(TAIWAN) 21-13 21-18

Ahsan/Setiawan (INDONESIA)

21-19 21-17

Endo/Hayakawa

(JAPAN) 21-13 22-20

21-13 23-21

Pratama/Saputra (INDONESIA)

Boe/Mogensen

21-23 21-18 21-18

(DENMARK) 21-15 21-16

Cai/FU

Kim/Kim (KOREA)

Koo/Tan

(CHINA)

(MALAYSIA)

Women’s Doubles Wang/Yu

22-20 21-15

(CHINA) 21-11 21-19

Jung/Kim (KOREA)

Pedersen/Juhl

21-14 14-21 21-15

(DENMARK) 21-17 13-21 21-18

21-14 18-21 21-8

Eom/Jang (KOREA)

Bernadeth/Pradipta

21-16 21-19

(INDONESIA) 21-17 21-17

Bao/Zhong

Tian/Zhao (CHINA)

Ma/Tang

(CHINA)

(CHINA)

Mixed Doubles Xu/Ma

21-10 17-21 21-19

(CHINA) 21-4 21-4

Mateusiak/Zieba (POLAND)

21-15 21-17

Shin/Eom

(KOREA) 21-9 21-15

Rijal/Susanto (INDONESIA)

12 Badminton Monthly November 2013

21-13 16-21 22-20

Hayakawa/Matsutomo (JAPAN)

Ahmad/Natsir

15-21 21-18 21-13

(INDONESIA) 21-12 22-20

Yoo/Jang (KOREA)

Zhang/Zhao (CHINA)

Men’s Doubles For the first time since 2007 the men’s doubles featured two non-Chinese teams: the Danish team of Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen competed against the Indonesian team of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. This round featured a fastpaced game with quick rallies with the older veteran Danish team losing to the quick and speedy Indonesian team. The Indonesian team quickly dispatched the Danish team 21-13 before finding themselves in a tight battle in the second match but willing themselves to pull off a 23-21 win.

Men’s Singles It was the dream match that everyone was waiting to see, the men’s singles final between the two superstars Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia and Lin Dan of China. Wei was able to win the first match 21-16 through his trademark technical skills and athletic abilities before quickly losing steam and dropping the second match 2113. Playing here after a long difficult battle with third-seeded Pengyu Du of China the day before, Wei was unable to finish his match with Dan and was force to be retired at 20-17, suffering from severe muscle cramps. Not only did he become the first wild card to win a championship gold, Dan also became the first person to win five world championship gold medals, thereby solidifying his position as one of the best in the history of badminton.

Mohammad Ahsan (right) and Hendra Setiawan won their first World Championships men’s doubles title beating Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen of Denmark.

Lin Dan reaches out to Lee Chong Wei suffering from cramps in the third set of the men’s singles final.

China’s superstar Lin Dan won his record fifth title at the World Championships, beating his rival Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 13

Special Interview with Lin Dan

Fifth Titl and…

Interview by Don Hearn Photographs: Badmintonphoto China’s Lin Dan is without a doubt badminton’s brightest star. The last two tournaments he completed saw him win a second Olympic gold medal and a record fifth World Championship singles title, but he has also stood atop the podium at every other major badminton tournament there is, including the Badminton Asia Championships, the Superseries Finals, and the Asian Games. Only a quartet of annual Superseries tournaments have eluded him since he won his first Korea Open, 11 years ago, at age 18.

14 Badminton Monthly November 2013

tle

Winning his Fifth title of World Championships, Lin Dan beat his respected rival Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia at the 2013 BWF World Championships in Guangzhou

www.badmintonmonthly.com 15

L

in Dan took an almost year-long hiatus following his second Olympic success, during which time he married his long-time girlfriend Xie Xingfang, herself a two-time World Champion and an Olympic silver medalist. Lin Dan participated in only one tournament, the Badminton Asia Championships, in addition to playing in Peter Gade’s final match, an exhibition on the stage of the Copenhagen Masters last December.

Lin Dan benefited from a wild card selection by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to qualify for the Wang Lao Ji BWF World Championships, despite a ranking that had ultimately plummeted to 286th in the world by the time he was to play his quarterfinal against world No. 2 compatriot Chen Long. Lin justified the wild card selection by winning his fifth World title when rival Lee Chong Wei retired from the final at match point. Prior to the match, BWF President and fellow Olympic men’s singles gold medalist Poul-Erik Hoyer said that they “haven’t seen better badminton players in history” than Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei.

“...the value of a player doesn’t depend on how early he can win the title but on how long he can stay on court.”

Lin Dan 16 Badminton Monthly November 2013

During Lin Dan’s long absence before the 2013 BWF World Championships, Lin visited Denmark to play an exhibition game against his rival Peter Gade of Denmark last December, on the stage of the Copenhagen Masters

You are perhaps the last player to win a major men’s singles title before age 20 (Korea Open 2002 and Denmark Open 2003). Bao Chunlai and Taufik Hidayat also have had this kind of result but no one has since. Were you, or your generation, just special or has the game changed in some way?

I’m sorry, I don’t think this is a good question. In my point of view, the value of a player doesn’t depend on how early he can win the title but on how long he can stay on court. A player can win titles at the age of 15, but this kind of thing doesn’t mean anything. If he can win titles at the age of 15 and keep playing on the professional court until the age of 35, I believe that would be the most valuable thing to him and the sport.

Many people point to your rivalry with Lee Chong Wei as being key to badminton’s increasing popularity. Do you agree, and what other factors are driving it?

It’s a great honor that Lee Chong Wei and I are considered by many of the concerned people to be an important factor to the sport. This is because both Lee and I make tremendous efforts to prove our value and capability. It’s also a great honor for me to have such an opponent with whom I could develop as a player.

Apart from Lee Chong Wei and me, I hope other categories of the sport can also create superstars who can attract young people to love the sport.

Lin Dan’s trademark jump smash during his fifth championship run at the 2013 BWF World Championships in Guangzhou

With its system of fines, the BWF is essentially forcing players to play Superseries Premier and Superseries Finals events. Is that the right way to do it or should it be like tennis where the prestige and prize money come first and then players want to go? If the latter, what would attract the players or the associations?

In my view, speaking honestly as a player, whenever a circumstance is forced on people, it becomes quite difficult to convince them of its merit. Of course, I can understand, under the current circumstances, the BWF wants more and more excellent players to play, in order to maintain the quality of these events, but maybe we could find a more effective or convincing way to achieve this goal. For example, we might need to learn from other sports such as tennis and see how they managed to attract players and spectators effectively.

Under current circumstances, for badminton associations of every country, the purpose in attending events still remains at the basic and original stage – to win medals. I can understand this kind of situation, as everybody looks forward to the best outcome when they play the game. But I think, in the next few years, both the BWF and the national associations will have to look at this problem at a higher level, where the most important thing is not countries competing for medals, but developing the sport to a higher class.

Otherwise, as some star players inside this sport gradually retire in the next few years, the influence and attention of the sport may drop over a period of time. This is not the result we want so I sincerely hope, with help and support from everyone, we can find a better way to sustain interest in the sport at its highest level.

What are your views on the instant review technology?

Everything has its advantages and disadvantages. But with the sport being developed to a certain level, high technology must be involved. With the assistance of high technology, the sport could become more attractive.

New non-BWF competitions – such as the China Badminton Super League (CBSL), Indian Badminton League, Djarum Superliga, the Axiata Cup, and others – rely heavily on star power. How attractive are opportunities like these to a player in your position?

It’s no doubt that great players are always indispensable to any sport, whether it’s badminton, or football and basketball. No matter how interesting the game is, it always needs players to perform and deliver it. Of course, the stage you play on in the Olympics is different compared to playing in the CBSL, but if the match is wonderful and the spectators can enjoy it, it’s already the best reward for us and to the sport. www.badmintonmonthly.com 17

Is there any way you would like to interact more with the world outside China? What would you like to be involved in?

I’ve played in many countries. Normally the local crowds like and support local players. With my performances over so many years, I hope the fans from other countries also will appreciate my efforts. That would be a very happy thing for me.

Are there any other top sports people outside China that you look up to?

I also watch other sports. I like (Lionel) Messi (of Argentina) and (David) Beckham (Great Britain) of football, (Lebron) James and Kobe (Bryant) of basketball. For me, I not only watch their wonderful performance on the court or field, but I am also aware of their importance and their tremendous contribution to their sport.

How do you choose the commercials you go for?

First, I don’t choose a commercial based only on money issues.

I must consider whether the product is suitable for me. Second, I don’t readily agree to do commercials for food or pharmaceuticals since people regard me as their hero and idol, and I must be responsible to them. That’s also the reason why I am so cautious in choosing the products I endorse.

Are you involved in any charity work on a long-term basis, and if not, what would be the cause you would like to defend?

Whenever I have time, I have always tried to attend some charity activities. Since I have gained so many things from our society, it’s a duty for me to give back to society. But as an active player, I have very limited time, and in China, I have not been able to find a long-term charity project which is suitable for me. I prefer to take part in charity work with my identity as an athlete, bringing hope to people, delivering the message about the attitude our athletes performed with when we were facing difficulties on court.

How are things different for you as a player, now that you are married? Is it particularly difficult in the Chinese national team system to train with the team and also have a family life?

Regarding this issue, I’m trying to adjust my practicing schedule and keep communicating with my coach in the national team right now. Of course, my career is very important, because badminton is my true love. But on the other hand, nothing is more important than my family. I hope I can find a balance between the two.

Is there any other accomplishment that you could wish for as a player? Or is it just down to goals such as winning a second Asian Games gold, a third Olympic gold, or a sixth World Championship title?

With my efforts, and also with the efforts from other people, to promote the sport, to develop the sport to a higher level, to make it more popular: this is my future target, not just gold medals.

18 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Lin Dan (right) at the podium of 2013 BWF World Championships with his wife Xie Xingfang

Lin Dan played against his long-time rival Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia at the London Olympics

ROAD TO RIO

by Eva Lee

Photograph: Badmintonphoto

the mistakes first even in those instances when we are able to keep up with the Asian and European teams in terms of speed and power. I think we need a lot more women’s doubles sparing.

For us, we are very lucky to have Christian Yahaya, Hock Lai Lee, our coach Tony Gunawan, and a group of guy friends here to help us spar, but the way men play is a very different than how women play so we always need time to adjust to a women’s game when we play tournaments. We recently joined the Danish League to get some good matches and sparring opportunities.

How does the World Championships compare with other international competitions?

It’s based on world ranking so you can enter by invitation only.

Every round is hard. It’s the same as all tournaments, but you Eva Lee (right) and Paula Lynn O’banana fought hard against fourth-seeded Denmark pair Christinna are playing against some of the best of every country so every Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl. round is a fight.

Compared to previous visits to World Championships in your career, was there anything different this time?

Nope. The most memorable World Championships for me was actually the one at home in 2005 when Tony Gunawan and Howard Bach won the men’s doubles. I lost my voice the day Eva Lee, a former Olympian (Beijing 2008), spoke to us about after the finals. her experience at the World Championships held in China last How many World Championships have you participated in?

August. She and her doubles partner Paula Lynn O’banana are And what are your results? training to compete at the summer Olympics in 2016.

I’ve played in five World Championship since 2003. Results were horrible. Hahaha. I have never passed the second round.

Tell me about the competition at the World Championships Hopefully that will change soon. in China. Your first match and the second match against the China is dominant in the women’s doubles category. What Denmark pair. will your strategy be against them?

Our performance at the World Championships this year was We have played Chinese pairs several times in various tournarather disappointing. Not to say that we could have gotten further ments already, so we have a good idea of what we are supposed because the Danish team was really solid, but I felt like neither of to do. We just try to rally and move them, avoiding the flat game us were mentally or physically prepared for the tournament. as much as we can. The Chinese women are also well known for Our first match was against a pair from Ukraine. It was a parhaving a huge smash, so we try to not lift in a way that will give ticularly bad match for me; I lost control of myself mentally… them the time and position to do that. which for me is rare. Luckily we were able to pull through thanks Besides the badminton competition, did you have fun visiting to Mr. Chew and Coach Cai’s coaching and our teammates’ sup- China? port. There was a particularly nasty lady in the crowd that threw Yes! The fod! The shopping! The food! Did I mention the her water bottle at us after the match when we were walking food? My grandparents live in Guangzhou so I got to go visit by. I heard from Howie (Howard Shu) later that she was madly them too. This time was particularly special since it was my cheering against us; and when he asked her why since we were birthday on the 7th. We invited the whole US team to a dinner Asians too, she said “I don’t care. I just hate the United States.” party with my family. My cousin Amy, who I am very close to, But I guess we are used to it…we get a lot of fun stories like this was also able to make it. It was a blessing to be able to spend everywhere we go. my birthday with my family and so many friends. My dad, who Our second match was against the fourth seed, Christinna Peddidn’t go (he was at home watching our dogs haha), joined us on ersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl. We had played them earlier in the Facetime. year during the Uber Cup so we were familiar with their playing How far do you think you ladies are from making it to Rio style. The Danish team was really solid…and tall. I’m 5’6”… I right now? barely reach Juhl’s shoulders.

About two years and 10 months? Anything can happen from What do you think you and Paula need to improve to have a now until then, so hopefully we can stay healthy and injury free better result? Are you satisfied with the result this time? and get some good results.

Anything but satisfied? I don’t think I can ever be “satisfied” Tell me about your competition schedule for the next six since I am always looking to improve my game. But I do go months. by the policy of having no “regrets” when I come off the court.

I don’t think I am home for more than 14 days for the next In terms of what we need to work on...everything!! We could three months. Luckily there are not a lot of tournaments in the definitely improve on power and speed, but the one thing we are beginning of the year, so I will get to spend some time at home definitely lacking is consistency. We often find ourselves making and get some good R&R (rest and relaxation).

More Sparring

www.badmintonmonthly.com 19

CHINA MASTERS (BWF Super Series) September 10–15, 2013 Jiangsu, China

Korea’s Ko/Lee Took Men’s Doubles China Victorious in 4 Events

Lee Yong Dae of Korea again sneaked a title away from China at the Adidas China Masters, while Liu Xin and Wang Zhengming had to work hard to ensure China would keep the other four.

by Kira Rin Badzine writer Photographs: Badmintonphoto The 2013 Adidas China Masters Superseries was a repeat of the 2011 China Masters, as once again, it was Lee Yong Dae sneaking the solitary title away from China, this time with partner Ko Sung Hyun by his side. Dae and his partners remain the only non-Chinese athletes to win in the last five years at the China Masters.

While the other doubles players had little difficulty keeping the titles within the homeland, singles players Liu Xin and Wang Zhengming had to put forth harder efforts to gain their titles.

Women’s Doubles While China had the women’s doubles title in the bag, that did not stop the players from competing fiercely to determine who would leave with the fatter cut of the prizes. Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang matched Ma Jin and Tang Jinhua shot for shot, sometimes returning the shots with interest. There was simply no answer for opponents who would consistently return the shots low, sometimes with added speed. Ma and Tang were only able to get the lead a couple of times, before Wang and Yu rocketed away with the match.

Men’s Doubles winner Lee Yong Dae (front) and Ko Sung Hyun

20 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Men’s Doubles It would be a bittersweet victory for Ko Sung Hyun and Lee Yong Dae as they fended off Hiroyuki Endo and Kenichi Hayakawa’s attacks to take their last title together. They ended their partnership much as they began it back in the summer of 2011: with a major tournament title.

Women’s Singles winner Liu Xin

Unlike their initiation at the US Open, where they breezed through without even being pushed to extra points, Endo and Hayakawa did not let this Superseries title go without a fight. An obstruction called on Hayakawa for his foot crossing under the net saw the Koreans make it game point first, but it took another three game points for them to take the opener.

Both sides were screaming after every

China Masters 2013 Jiangsu, China September 10–15, 2013 Winners Men’s Singles 1.

2.

3.

3.

Zhengming Wang (China) Wan Ho Son (Korea) Sho Sasaki (Japan) Jan O. Jorgensen (Denmark)

1.

2.

3.

3.

Ko/Dae (Korea) Endo/Hayakawa (Japan) Liu/Qiu (China) Chai/Hong (China)

Men’s Doubles

Women’s Singles 1. Xin Liu (China) 2. Porntip Buranaprasertsuk (Thailand) 3. Xuerui Li (China) 3. Sayaka Takahashi (Japan)

Women’s Doubles 1.

2.

3.

3.

Wang/Yu (China) Ma/Tang (China) Ou/Tang (China) Jang/Kim (Korea)

Mixed Doubles 1.

2.

3.

3.

Zhang/Zhao (China) Yoo/Eom (Korea) Widianto/Dili (Indonesia) Kido/Bernadeth (Indonesia)

point, showing their hunger for the title.

The Japanese duo made some daring plays to come back and almost erase a six-point deficit late in the second game; however the Koreans kept them in check, upping the pace for every tactic used on them.

For the last laugh together, Hyun accidentally pre-empted the Japanese on the podium, causing his partner to pull him back, whilst Hayakawa had his own fun at Hyun’s red-faced embarrassment.

Women’s Singles Perhaps exhausted from a tiring match with Li Xuerui the night before, Porntip Buranaprasertsuk of Thailand found herself at the wrong end of a one-sided match in her women’s singles final against Liu Xin of China. Xin, back from a hiatus of almost a year, may have come straight over to the China Masters from losing the China National Games final on Tuesday in the same week, but she had a much easier path to the final once she arrived in Changzhou.

Slow reactions and unforced errors cost Buranaprasertsuk the first game, but she mustered herself to play her normal game and force mistakes from Xin in the second.

Alas, the stamina cost of a third game was too great and she once found herself losing point after point as her reserves ran dry and Xin climbed to the top of a Superseries podium for the first time.

Men’s Singles While Son Wan Ho of Korea and Wang Zhengming of China played softly in the men’s singles final, at a chance to attack they would leap into it, jumping to take the smashes as high as possible. Ho was the first to step into the attacks, rapidly smashing his way to a one-game lead.

Zhengming soon caught on to the pace, and soon both were playing delicate

net-play and rushing attacks. Zhengming came back from behind to force a deciding game, upping the tension of the match.

Ho took the lead, carefully managing his stamina and pace to last the game.

The loud home crowd, however, fired up Zhengming to up his pace even further, cheering at every shot he hit down. A heated Zhengming erased two match points, and while he was momentarily affected by a service fault called against him at the tiebreak, he put it behind him to bring home the title with a loud yell.

Mixed Doubles China’s dominance continued in the mixed discipline, as the pair Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei of China locked down Yoo Yeon Seong and Eom Hye Won of Korea. Swift smashes and quick drives gave the Koreans few chances to even start an attack. The Singapore Open runners-up were only able to peck away a few points through small openings and mistakes as the Olympic champions took it in two straight.

Men’s Singles winner Wang Zhengming

www.badmintonmonthly.com 21

JAPAN OPEN (BWF Super Series) September 17–22, 2013 Tokyo, Japan

Akane Yamaguchi of Japan became the youngest-ever champion in the seven years of the BWF World Superseries.

Akane’s First, Japan’s First, World’s Youngest!

by Miyuki Komiya Badzine writer Photograph: Badmintonphoto

With her seventh victory of the week, Akane Yamaguchi, 16, of Japan won her first senior title, Japan’s first-ever Japan Open title and became the youngest winner in the seven years of the BWF World Superseries.

22 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Women’s Singles

The 2013 Yonex Japan Open Superseries women’s singles final featured unlikely but deserving competitors, both Japanese.

One was Yamaguchi, the 16-year-old who joined the national team after reaching the final of last autumn’s World Junior Championships in Chiba. The other was Shizuka Uchida, who is not on the national team but has shown promise on different occasions in her brief career, but nothing like her shock defeat of former World Champion Wang Yihan of China in the semi-final. Either way, it promised to be the first time ever that Japan would win a title at its own Open.

In the first game, Yamaguchi had a good start and kept the lead until the end. In the second game, though, Yamaguchi missed far more shots, gifting several easy points

to Uchida. Still, Yamaguchi was not under pressure and played coolly. The youngster changed her tactics to extend the rallies, alternating between drop shots and smashes, between net shots and lifts to grab the first Japan Open title for her country. Moreover, she became the youngest-ever Superseries winner, surpassing India Open winner Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand by nearly two years.

“I didn’t expect to get the win this time,” Yamaguchi said in the post-match press conference. “My first senior title is a Superseries! It’s amazing. It hasn’t really sunk in yet. I still feel like I’m in a dream.”

Men’s Singles

Kenichi Tago of Japan has dreamt of winning the Japan Open since he was young. Today, he had his first chance to make that dream come true as the first Japanese men’s singles finalist in the event’s history, but there was just that tiny detail: he was facing three-time champion and world number one Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia.

Tago did manage to catch Wei at the eight-point mark and then calmed down and played tactically to maintain the upper hand until 20-17. Then Wei changed his pace and moved more speedily, forcing Tago to make errors. Second game became steady as neither player made easy mistakes and the score stayed very close.

Tago played evenly but the match was over when Wei hit a smash into Tago’s body and Lee had won his fourth title in his sponsor’s home Open.

“Tago played well today. I think he has become stronger and our next match will be a tough match,” said Wei. “Tago is

a good player, but not a top player. A top player is one who doesn’t lose even if he feels bad. Tago is sometimes good and beats high-ranking players but sometimes he also loses to lower-ranked players easily. A top player doesn’t lose to a lower-ranked player even if he feels bad.”

Men’s Doubles

China’s Ma Jin (left) and Tang Jinhua won their first Japan Open title.

World Champions Ahsan/ Setiawan of Indonesia had to work extra hard in the first game as the lower-ranked Chai Biao/ Hong Wei of China did not let the Indonesians break away easily, saving a game point at 19-20 and putting the Indonesian fans at the edge of their seats. But the undaunted Setiawan took his team to a third game point with his soft block at the net and this was quickly followed by a service return error by the Chinese that put the top seeds up one game. In the second, Chai/Hong tried to put a lot of pressure on Ahsan, continuously pounding him with varied shots but Ahsan responded well under the pressure. The Indonesian pair converted the first match opportunity to register their fourth straight tournament victory in a row.

go for the shot. Ma/Tang easily walked away with their first Japan Open gold medal together in two straight games.

“We came fully prepared but that match was easier than we anticipated. It’s our first title this year as a pair so I’m very happy,” commented Tang after the match.

Mixed Doubles

Olympic mixed doubles champions Zhang/Zhao go home with their own gold medal courtesy of a walkover gift from team-mates Xu/Ma.

Yonex Open Japan 2013 Tokyo, Japan September 17–22, 2013 Winners Men’s Singles

Women’s Doubles

China’s Ma Jin/Tang Jinhua engaged the much taller Christinna Pedersen/Kamilla Rytter Juhl of Denmark in fast exchanges of flat drives. The placement of the shuttle by the Chinese pair in between Pedersen and the left-hander Juhl proved lethal.

The Danes got confused in their rotation and at times couldn’t judge who should

1.

2.

3.

3.

Chong Wei Lee (Malaysia) Kenichi Tago (Japan) Tien Minh Nguyen (Vietnam) Huan Gao (China)

1.

2.

3.

3.

Ahsan/Setiawan (Indonesia) Chai/Hong (China) Kang/Liu (China) Boe/Mogensen (Denmark)

1.

2.

3.

3.

Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) Shizuka Uchida (Japan) Tzu Ying Tai (Chinese Taipei) Yihan Wang (China)

1.

2.

3.

3.

Ma/Tang (China) Pedersen/Juhl (Denmark) Bernadeth/Pradipta (Indonesia) Matsutomo/Takahashi (Japan)

1.

2.

3.

3.

Zhang/Zhao (China) Xu/Ma (China) Nielsen/Pedersen (Denmark) Liu/Bao (China)

Men’s Doubles

Women’s Singles

Women’s Doubles

Mixed Doubles

www.badmintonmonthly.com 23

XXII Pan Am Junior Championships July 21-28, 2013 Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

GOLDEN in MEXICO

Team USA at the XXII Pan Am Junior Championships. (Photograph: Tim Yu)

US players captured 17 individual gold medals and a total of 51 medals at the 2013 Badminton Pan Am Junior Cham- pions held at Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The team competition held before the individual event was full of tough matches for Team USA during the semifinals, but they were eventually able to claw their way out to a 3rd place finish.

24 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Team USA Squad Team Event

Boys: Aston Khor, Alan Shekhtman, William Cheung, Kenneth Hui Girls: Anna Tang, Cherie Chow, Christine Yang, Alena Wang

Individual Events

U19 Boys: Kevin Chan, William Cheung, Kenneth Hui, Aston Khor, Alan Shekhtman, Nicholas Waller, Roberto Zeng U19 Girls: Cherie Chow, Stephanie Lam, Anna Tang, Alena Wang, Christine Yang U17 Boys: Vinson Chiu, Raymond Hsia, Timothy Lam, Albert Li, Justin Ma, Darren Yang U17 Girls: Victoria Chen, Crystal Pan, Alena Wang, Sonya Wong, Angela Zhang, Candy Zhang U15 Boys: Raymond Chen, Eric Jiang, Gokul Kalyanasundaram, Ethan Low, Andre Wang Cadmus Yeo U15 Girls: April Gong, Jamie Hsu, Annie Xu, Kerry Xu, Rina Yan, Julie Yeung, Cindy Yuan Michelle Zhang U13 Boys: Clayton Cayen, Eric Chang, Karthik Kalyanasundaram, Alvin Li, Timothy Shee Kenneth Tan, Calvin Xia, Alexander Zheng U13 Girls: Karina Chan, Charisse Chow, Jennie Gai, Vivian Yao, Helen Ye, Cassandra Yu U11 Boys: Don Averia, Aaron Low, Alohi Sheung, Brandon Xu, Joshua Yuan U11 Girls: Claire Chen, Nicole Ju, Tiffany Kuang, Lauren Lam, Evelyn Zeng

US players on the 3rd place poduim in the medal ceremony.The team defeated Mexico in the 3rd place match after losing to Brazil in the semi-final. From left to right, Kenneth Hui, Alan Shekhtman, William Cheung, Aston Khor, Anna Tang, Alena Wang, Cherie Chow and Christine Yang.

(Photo courtesy of Allysa Khor)

V

ictories one after the other showered the US junior players as they won 17 golds out of 25 individual events at the 2013 Badminton Pan Am Junior Championships held in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

The US players swept the U11 and the U13 events taking four golds in the U15, two golds in the U17 and one gold in the U19.

In the fierce U19, the US players advanced to finals for all the categories, but came out with one victory in women’s doubles, with Cherie Chow and Christine Yang. Canada and Brazil each won two

events.

In team competitions held prior to the individual events, despite a dominating performance in the group competition, the US lost to Brazil 2-3 in the semifinal. The US then came back to beat Mexico 3-1 to secure third place.

“It was a crushing loss. We were so close to reaching the finals and came up short,” William Cheung, 19, one of the players, recalled. “But we didn’t just hang our heads. It was through this adversity that we grew stronger. We regrouped and came out together the next day not discouraged but determined to finish strong.”

Team gathering to compete.

“Go team USA!” (Photo courtesy of Allysa Khor)

www.badmintonmonthly.com 25

XXII Pan Am Junior Championships July 21-28, 2013 Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

The Future is Bright

by Lee Yan US Pan Am team manager The XXII Pan Am Junior Championships 2013 was held in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It was my family’s first trip to Mexico and my daughter’s first Pan Ams. As a parent volunteer assisting with team management, I was a bit surprised at how much work there was leading up to the tournament. There were piles of forms to sign. On top of that flight schedules, hotel bookings, travel insurance, uniform orders and registration fees all required attention. Thankfully, some of our management staff and many of the parents had been through this before and their experience proved to be invaluable.

At the tournament venue, the resort offered many conveniences. The gym and food facilities were all on site, and the kids even had a swimming pool and a beautiful beach to play on.

However, the competition was tough and the playing conditions were far from ideal. I admit that I was at first somewhat worried that our players would have a hard time adjusting to the heat, humidity and a crowded gym. Nevertheless, our players and coach-

With Team Colombia.

(Photo courtesy of Allysa Khor)

es did a good job adjusting to the environment. For most tournaments within the US, kids from different clubs across the country compete against each other, so it was a nice change to watch them cheering for and supporting each other. Thanks to their hard work and the support from the parents, we have had a very successful and memorable 2013 Pan Am Junior Championships.

Accomplishments from US players are: • Team USA won more total, gold, and silver medals than all the other countries combined. Well done!

• US U11 and U13 youngsters had a clean sweep of all the gold medals.

I hope Team USA will continue to train hard and prepare for the tough competitions in the future. I look forward to seeing what they will accomplish.

Team USA’s future is bright.

Badminton is still an underdog sport in the US (people often mistaken my daughter’s badminton bag for a tennis bag). However, it is gaining popularity quickly as I am seeing more and more clubs being set up in the Pacific Northwest and around the country.

Hard working Pan Am delegates. US Team Manager Allysa Khor 4th from left in the front row. (Photo courtesy of Allysa Khor)

26 Badminton Monthly November 2013

XXII PAN AM Junior Championships Puerto Vallarta, Mexico August 5-11

Team Group A USA 5-0 Chile Chile 3-2 Colombia USA 5-0 Colombia

PUERTO RICO

MEXICO JAMAICA

3-2

BRAZIL PERU

3-0

3-0

3-1

3-2 3-0

3-0

CHILE

Team Elimination Round

USA 3-0 PUERTO RICO

21-7,21-8 Román/Cáceres 21-4,21-17 Pedro Zapata 21-6,21-8 Génesi Valentín

16-21,14-21 Lohaynny Vicente 10-21,17-21 Ygor Coelho Oliveira 21-8,21-8 Freitas/Gomes 21-13,21-17 Farias/Soares 21-16,8-21,15-21 Oliveira/Vicente

USA 3-1 MEXICO

MS: William Cheung WS: Anna Tang MD: Khor/Shekhtman WD: Chow/Yang

16-21,16-21 Luis Esquivel 21-12,18-21,21-17 Sabrina Martinez 21-5,21-11 Gamiño/Fuentes 21-12,21-14 Fausto/Saavedra

25-23 21-13

22-20 19-21 21-11

21-17 21-15 21-13 21-15

21-13 21-13 21-17 21-17

21-10 21-11 21-7 21-12

Chen/Kuang (USA) BYE

21-15 21-14

21-16 22-20

21-16 21-11 21-10 21-6

21-15 21-13 21-8 21-12

21-17 26-28 21-16 21-12 21-9

21-17 21-14 24-22 21-12

21-10 21-17 21-15 18-21 21-19

21-13 21-15 21-6 21-4

21-10 21-16

21-16 21-13 21-19 16-21 25-23

21-17 16-21 21-16

BYE 21-4 21-4

21-17 21-19

21-10 21-8 21-4 21-12

21-9 21-5

25-23 21-18

21-17 19-21 21-15 21-4 21-5

Ruben Castellanos (GUATEMALA) 21-11 21-15 Ty Lindeman 21-2 (CANADA) 21-17 Jonathan Lai 21-15 (CANADA) 21-13 Victor Ramirez (MEXICO)

14-21 24-22 21-10 21-18 21-17

21-12 21-12 21-13 21-11

Victoria Chen (USA) 21-18 21-19 Michelle Tong 21-13 (CANADA) 21-5 Kylie Cheng 21-13 CANADA) 10-21 22-20 Alena Wang (USA)

21-8 21-8 21-11 21-19

16-21 24-22 21-19 21-19 21-14

Lozano/Salinas (MEXICO) Flores/Salinas (PERU) Ramírez/Rivera (MEXICO) Lam/Zeng (USA)

Gai/Ye (USA) 21-4 21-6 Castillo/Saponara 14-21 (PERU) 21-13 21-12 Lima/Lopes (BRAZIL) 23-21 21-19 Mendéz/Quiñonez (MEXICO)

Hsia/Li 21-17 (USA) 19-21 Cury/Salgado 21-16 21-10 (BRAZIL) 21-16 Bauer/Lindeman 21-6 (CANADA) 21-9 Davila/Torre (PERU)

Guedes/Lima (BRAZIL) Shue/Joensen (CANADA) Burgos/Pineda (MEXICO) Yuan/Zhang (USA)

Chen/Pan (USA) 21-14 21-10 Torre/Valero 21-5 (MEXICO) 21-16 Carranza/Macias 18-21 (PERU) 24-22 Gomes/Silva 21-13 (BRAZIL)

21-9 21-10 21-18 20-22 21-12

19-21 21-10 21-19 21-12 21-17

Vélez/Salinas (MEXICO) Xu/Lam (USA) Morales/López (MEXICO) Sheung/Kuang (USA)

Cayen/Ye (USA) 21-14 21-14 Lízarraga/Mendéz 23-21 (MEXICO) 21-17 Chang/Chan 23-21 (USA) 11-21 21-15 Bittencourt/Lopes (BRAZIL)

21-8 21-5

21-19 21-15 21-11 21-10

Jose Guevara (PERU) Alfredo Correa (MEXICO) Raymond Hsia (USA) Jason Ho-Shue (CANADA)

Benny Lin 14-21 (CANADA) 21-10 21-17 Alan Shekhtman 21-18 (USA) 21-12 Adams Rodriguez 21-17 (GUATELAMA) 8-21 21-10 Duncan Yao (CANADA)

Lindeman/Wang (CANADA) Cury/Guedes (BRAZIL) Bauer/Wong (CANADA) Correa/Valero (MEXICO)

21-12 21-14

21-7 21-13 21-14 17-21 21-12 21-5 21-9

21-16 14-21 21-8

21-15 21-15 21-18 14-21 21-19

21-13 21-12

21-4 21-8

22-20 21-19

21-8 8-21 21-16 21-12 21-9

Micaela Castillo (PERU) Jaqueline Lopes (BRAZIL) Vitória B. Brunetti (BRAZIL) Vivian Yao (USA)

Adriana Valero (MEXICO) Crystal Pan (USA) Brittney Tam (CANADA) Daniela Macias (PERU)

Lohaynny Caroline Vicente (BRAZIL) 21-13 21-11 Haramara Gaitan 21-13 (MEXICO) 21-19 Josephine Wu 21-16 (CANADA) 21-18 Anna Tang (USA)

Camogliano/Macias

WALK (PERU) OVER 21-17 21-14

21-14 15-21 21-15 21-14 21-19

Faria/Guimarães (BRAZIL) Angeles/Gaitan (MEXICO) Cayen/Zheng (USA)

21-14 15-21 21-16 21-12 21-11

21-15 21-17 21-12 21-15

Barajas/Bautista (MEXICO) Flores/Mendoza (PERU) Lozoya/Romero (MEXICO) Yao/Yu (USA)

22-20 21-17 21-13 21-19

21-12 21-15 22-24 21-15 21-10

Salazar/Mendoza (PERU) Zheng/Gai (USA) Camogliano/Castillo (PERU) Shee/Chow (USA)

Boy’s U19 Singles 21-15 16-21 21-13 21-18 21-13

21-15 17-21 21-16 21-10 21-13

Samuel Ricketts (JAMAICA) Ramon Garrideo (MEXICO) William Cheung (USA) Ygor Coelho Oliveira (BRAZIL)

Girl’s U19 Singles 21-12 21-10 21-13 18-21 21-18

21-19 21-16 21-13 18-21 21-13

Camilla Garcia (PERU) Cherie Chow (USA) Christine Yang (USA) Kyleigh O’Donoghue (CANADA)

Boy’s U19 Doubles Castellanos/Umaña (GUATEMALA) Leite/Voight (BRAZIL) Lam/Ma (USA) Shue/Lai (CANADA)

Lee/Osborne (CANADA) 21-18 21-13 Ricketts/Rose 19-21 (JAMAICA) 21-12 21-14 Rodriguez/Samayoa (GUATELAMA) 21-6 21-14 Khor/Shekhtman (USA)

21-16 21-12

21-16 21-15

21-10 21-6 21-18 16-21 21-14

Cheung/Hui (USA) Lin/Yao (CANADA) Barham/Smith (JAMAICA) Duany/Macias (PERU)

Girl’s U19 Doubles Martinez/Soto (MEXICO) Wong/Zhang (USA) Lillo/Ramzan (CHILE)(SURINAME) Cheng/Wong (CANADA)

Mixed U17 Doubles Wang/Yeung (USA) Wang/O’Donoghue (CANADA) Mathias/Carvalho (BRAZIL) Low/Yuan (USA)

21-11 21-16

Mixed U13 Doubles

Girl’s U17 Doubles 21-10 21-15

21-16 22-24 21-19

Kenneth Tan (USA) Arturo Angeles (MEXICO) Clayton Cayen (USA) Luan M. Bittencourt (BRAZIL)

Girl’s U13 Doubles

Boy’s U17 Doubles Correa/Naime (MEXICO) Farias/Santos (BRAZIL) Criado/Rosell (PERU) Poon/Wang (CANADA)

22-20 21-16

Boy’s U13 Doubles Abreu/Salgado (BRAZIL) 21-16 21-16 Li/Xia 24-22 (USA) 21-16 Martínez/Saavedra 21-15 (MEXICO) 15-21 21-19 Camogliano/Salazar (PERU)

Girl’s U17 Singles Rina Yan (USA) Ruiqi He (CANADA) Erin O’Donoghue (CANADA) Kerry Xu (USA)

Sânia Lima (BRAZIL) 21-14 21-17 Jennie Gai 21-11 (USA) 21-17 Helen Ye (USA) 21-19 21-19 Adelina Quiñonez (MEXICO)

Ayala/Mendoza (MEXICO) Low/Sheung (USA) Martínez/Vélez (MEXICO) Bossio/Viale (PERU)

Boy’s U17 Singles Uriel Francisco CanjuraArtiga (EL SALVADOR) Bryan Poon (CANADA) ANDRE WANG (USA) Jonathan S. Mathias (BRAZIL)

Gustavo Salazar (PERU) 21-17 21-15 Karthik Kalyanasundaram 21-19 (USA) 21-17 Rodrigo Camogliano 22-20 (PERU) 19-21 21-11 Eric Chang (USA)

Girl’s U13 Singles Lauren Lam (USA) Jimena Salinas (MEXICO) Fernanda Munar (PERU) Claire Chen (USA)

Mixed U11 Doubles

Mixed U15 Doubles Farias/Lima (BRAZIL) 23-21 21-18 Bruno/Castillo 21-11 (PERU) 21-9 Yeo/Xu (USA) 21-8 21-6 Gilinski/Fiori (BRAZIL)

21-12 21-9

Yuan/Chen (USA) 21-2 21-6 Viale/Flores 21-16 (PERU) 21-9 Mendoza/Acosta (MEXICO) 21-7 21-5 Low/Ju (USA)

Girl’s U15 Doubles Xu/Xu (USA) 21-3 21-6 Carvalho/Cervásio 21-9 (BRAZIL) 21-8 Carter/Debelle (CANADA) 21-9 21-8 Stiglich/Wong (PERU)

21-10 18-21 21-18

21-5 21-14

Acosta/López (MEXICO) 21-15 21-17 Moromisato/Munar (PERU)

Boy’s U15 Doubles Wang/Yeo (USA) 21-12 21-17 Bruno/Mini 21-11 (PERU) 21-14 Luo/Tam (CANADA) 21-15 21-15 Martinez/Zapata (MEXICO)

22-20 21-9

21-9 21-13

BYE

Silva/Silva (BRAZIL) 21-5 21-12 Morales/Morales (MEXICO)

Girl’s U15 Singles Annie Xu (USA) 21-16 21-7 Paula La Torre 21-16 (PERU) 21-23 21-13 Sâmia Lima 21-18 (BRAZIL) 21-17 Kelly Carter (CANADA)

21-15 21-14

Boy’s U11 Doubles Xu/Yuan (USA) BYE

Boy’s U15 Singles Ailton Correa 21-17 (MEXICO) 13-21 Diego Mini 21-11 23-21 (PERU) 21-15 Desmong Wang 23-21 (CANADA) 17-21 21-5 Walesson E. Santos (BRAZIL)

21-6 21-5

Boy’s U13 Singles Davi C. Silva (Brazil) Brandon Xu (USA) João Pedro Abreu (BRAZIL) Alohi Sheung (USA)

Girl’s U11 Doubles

USA 2-3 BRAZIL

WS: Anna Tang MS: Alan Shekhtman WD: Chow/Yang MD: Khor/Shekhtman XD: Hui/Chow 3rd Place Match

Tiffany Kuang (USA) 21-6 21-1 Kassandra Lozano 21-14 (MEXICO) 21-10 Gianna Stiglish (PERU) 21-8 21-5 Nicole Ju (USA)

CANADA

XD: Hui/Chow MS: Alan Shekhtman WS: Anna Tang

13-21 21-19 21-16

Girl’s U11 Singles

Team Elimination USA

Boy’s U11 Singles Don Averia (USA) 21-9 21-9 Alan Vélez 21-14 (MEXICO) 21-11 Joshua Yuan 21-11 (USA) 24-22 David C. Silva (BRAZIL)

Wang/Wu 21-13 (CANADA) 19-21 Freitas/Pereira 21-12 21-9 (BRAZIL) 21-7 Tang/Wang (USA) 21-14 21-13 Clarke/Wynter (JAMAICA)

21-15 21-14 21-17 21-15

21-9 21-13 21-15 21-9

Ishaak/Leefmans (SURINAME) Gaitan/Solís (MEXICO) O’Donoghue/Tong (CANADA) Chow/Yang (USA)

Mixed U19 Doubles Lam/Zhang (USA) Lai/Cheng (CANADA) Chiu/Pan (USA) Shue/Tong (CANADA)

Osborne/Wu (CANADA) 21-18 21-11 Rose/Wynter 21-15 (JAMAICA) 21-11 Zapata/Valentín 21-14 (PUERTO RICO) 19-21 21-16 Zeng/Wang (USA)

21-14 21-10 21-16 15-21 21-18

22-24 21-17 21-6 21-16 21-18

Román/Cáceres (PUERTO RICO) Chan/Yang (USA) Garrido/Gaitan (MEXICO) Ibrahim/Vicente (BRAZIL)

www.badmintonmonthly.com 27

2013 SUMMER UNIVERSIADE

Participated for First Time in US History

At the Universiade Opening Ceremony, (from left) Randy Ma, Michael Buasan, Sharon Ng, Danae Long.

(Photograph: Amy Ng)

Like the Olympics

Four US College Students Competed

F

or the first time in US badminton history, a small group of college students participated in the Summer Universiade Games held in Kazan, Russia, in July. Despite being the smallest team competing in the event, also known as the World University Games, the four college students, Michael Buasan, 19, of Rocklin, Danae Long, 19, of Fremont, Randy Ma, 20, of Cupertino, and Sharon Ng, 19, of Sunnyvale, gave their best in the team events and individual competition. The next summer Universiade will be held in Gwangju, South Korea, 2015. In this story, team manager Amy Ng and the US badminton athletes recall their experience at the Universiade.

Fierce Competition The US team competed with Germany, Japan and Macau in the round robin team event on July 5. In each team competition, the four players had to play two matches each, totaling six matches within eight hours. After losing to Germany and Japan 0-5, the U.S. team managed to pull off a win against Macau 4-1.

Next day, the US competed with Ukraine in the quarterfinal. Mixed doubles pair Buasan and Long lost 14-21, 16-21; then Men’s Singles Ma fought back strongly but lost 19-21, 18-21. In a must-win situation, women’s singles Ng held on to the end with a nail-biting finish of three games, 21-11, 18-21, 23-21. Ma and Buasan for men’s doubles next, fought hard giving everything they had but lost with scores of 10-21, 19-21.

The US had the smallest number of players, and were forced to play games one after the other, while other larger teams even had backups. “My biggest fear was that if one player injured himself or herself, then we would have been in trouble.

I would prefer the smallest team to consist of three women and three men, but a lot of people couldn’t participate due to financial reasons,” says the US head coach Ray Ng. “We might have been able to have better results against Germany and Ukraine if we had more doubles and mixed players. We might have been able to pull out a 3-2 win.”

28 Badminton Monthly November 2013

2013 Summer Universiade

(above) The center of the athlete village with all flags.

Athletes stayed at buildings on the right. Each room has a bathroom, small living room with a refrigerator, sink and a stove top. (Photograph: Amy Ng)

(above) Posing with the Australian badminton team at the competition gym after friendly matches. Both teams became friends after the Australian team switched its practice time so the US team could attend the US flag raising ceremony. In return, the US team shared its bus with the Australians to the USA vs. Russia exhibition basketball game. (Photograph: Amy Ng) (right) Universiade Opening Ceremony. More than 10,400 university athletes from 162 countries participated in the 2013 Summer Universiade. The opening ceremony was as spectacular as that of the Olympics. (Photograph: Amy Ng)

by Amy Ng, Team Manager

Thanks to the Staff Who Su pported Us Next Step: Badminton at the NCAA Our experience at the World University Games (WUG) or Summer Universiade was ver ning to end. I, as parent and tea y positive from beginm manager, had to do a lot of leg-work and planning ahead sent athletes to international of time when we competitions like the Junior Pan Am and Junior World Champio the WUG we did not have to nship, but for do all the planning. The US-IU SF (United States International Federation), which is the officia Un iversity Sports l representative and governing body for the United States in an event-planning company, all FISU events, has BTI. By working ahead of tim e for us, BTI made it easier to They took care of us, getting eve prepare for the WUG. rything from our Russian vis as, to the opening ceremony un phones with local SIM cards iforms, to cell with preprogrammed names and numbers. This gave us the were very reliable. good feeling that they Before we left for Russia, som e people were skeptical about the badminton team participat though there were a lot of peo ing in the WUG, even ple who showed interest. The WUG was unknown in the bad in the US at the time. Compare minton community d to badminton-only events, the WUG made us feel part of 400 athletes. When we arrive a big team of over d at 3:00 a.m. in Kazan, a staff-m ember from BTI greeted us eve n at that hour.

We also have to give credit to Russia. There were English-spea king WUG Russian volunteers point we passed through, to dir at every transit ect and expedite our check-in and transfer process. Once we BTI staff was there to greet us arrived at Kazan, with maps of the athletes’ vill age and badminton venue, up expect with security checks, our date us on what to building’s rules and cafeteria hours, and with even a packed for our athletes and staff were brunch. Credentials also taken care of for us, so we could take a nap.

(Continued)

www.badmintonmonthly.com 29

2013 Summer Universiade

(Thanks to the Staff Who Supported Us, continued) All the US athletes stayed in the sam e building BTI had offices. After our nap, BTI gave us an orientation and duced all the staff members who wer introe responsible for various duties. We especially appreciated the medical staff .

We were very impressed with the athl etes’ village. It was VERY secure, like a city within a city, with its own poli and a metal detector at every entranc ce e. With all the amenities in the athletes ’ village, we felt that it was just like the Olympics (based on what we had seen on TV). We were most impressed with the opening ceremony!

The badminton venue was comparable to the World Junior Championship ven ue, but with a lot more established world players, such as Korea’s Lee Yun g Dae. Luckily our players had all bee n to the World Junior Championships, so they were not intimidated. We had requested training times beforehand , so we got what we asked for. During practice we had friendly games with the Australian team; we also appreci ated interacting with other English-spe ing countries. akWe worked very long hours on the first day because we had to play against thre e countries in the team event. We also needed to attend the team meeting s every day, which sometimes ended as late as 11 p.m. Additionally, we had to write reports daily about the competi tions, which were sent to both USA Badminton and WUG-USA media.

Overall, all the athletes had very pos itive experiences and they made frie nds with people from various countri We just wish that we had had a larger es. team, so we could even have the play ing time for the athletes and they wou not have to play so many matches in ld one day. The signs of physical and men tal fatigue did show at the latter part the competition. of Our athletes enjoyed watching and sup porting other athletes competing in various events such as diving, weight lifting, volleyball, and much more. We wished we could have stayed until the closing ceremony because there were so many events we didn’t have time to watch.

The goal for the future is to encourage college badminton players to particip ate in formal competition events.

Hopefully, through active participatio n in international college events, bad min ton will eventually get more recognition and become popular at the coll ege level in the US. The ultimate goa l is to make badminton an official NCAA sports event. For the 2015 WUG, we expect that there will be more applica nts. As a result, we expect to send in larger team of 8–12 people participatin a g in the team and individual events.

Additionally, we plan to have a mandatory training camp prior to the WUG in preparation for the Games. We are still at the early phase of discussions but most likely there will be a trial dur , ing the Christmas break if there are mo re applicants than places available.

Since there is no funding from USA Badminton for the expenses of WUG, we recommend interested applicants talk to their university about possibl to e funding, especially if they have a bad minton club.

Don’t forget; prior to the 2015 WUG, there is the 2014 World University Bad minton Championship to be held in beautiful Cordoba, Spain, July 23–29, 2014.

During the stay at Kazan, four US badminton athletes were attended by US professional medical staff. When they first arrived, chiropractors helped loosen their muscles, which were stiff from many hours of flying. They also needed to ice sore arms after a tiring first day of competition. An orthopedic surgeon stayed at the competition gym on the same day to accommodate their condensed schedule and in case of injury.

Team Manager Amy Ng recalled, “This was the first time that my husband and I were not worried what would happen if our badminton players were ever sick or hurt. Luckily no one was.

I remember when we were at the World Junior Championships and some of our players were sick, we asked for the doctor from another country for help since we had no medical staff for the USA badminton team.” (Photograph: Amy Ng) 30 Badminton Monthly November 2013

2013 Summer Universiade

by Michael Buasan

sity

Sophomore, San Jose State Univer

in Kazan, Russia, was an incredible Representing the US at the Universiade honor. the athletes’ village helped us prepare for The relaxed, safe environment of the n eve r or exit the village, security was intense play. At each checkpoint to ente baggage for food, water, or suspicious stricter than at airports, checking our etes badges. But once inside the village, athl items and having us scan our athlete were offered many leisure activities. ton tournament, when it had ended, Although our focus was on our badmin s fun, and explore. There were golf cart our team decided to have a little bit of side er oth the we could easily get a ride to that circulated around the village, so ers and other athletes along the way. of the village, interacting with the driv ers’ lounge, an array of enormous igWe also met other athletes in the play e igloos were board games, Ping-Pong loo-shaped inflatable tents. Inside thes At s, a soda bar, foldable beds, and more. tables, beanbag chairs, big-screen TV re music. Athletes who wanted to be mo night, there were dance parties and live e es, and scooters for free. Having all thes active could also rent bikes, roller blad es. erience of the University Gam great activities merely added to the exp

by Danae Long

Michael Buasan in action at the Summer Universiade Games in Kazan.

(Photograph: Paul Alvarez)

Sophomore, San Fran

cisco State University

I had no idea how big the World University Ga mes (WUG) were until Mr. Craig Jonas, Te am USA’s Head of Deleg ation, mentioned that it was the second m ost prestigious interna tio nal competition ever. For two weeks in Kazan, Russia, the USA badminton team was given the chance to create new memories wi th over 160 countries and 10,000 athletes from all over the world .

Guests of Russia receiv ed elite treatment ever ywhere. There were volunteers everywhere to assist us and we neve r had to worry about meals. The cafet eria used the same cater er as the 2012 London Olympics, offering unlimited beverages an d a wide variety of cuisines, even the po pular McDonalds. Durin g meals, we took the opportunity to mee t athletes from other co un tries including the South African judo team, Korean women’s sh ooting team, and many badminton athlet es. Lasting friendships were formed too— we still keep in touch wi th the Australian badm inton team.

Even though we predict ed tough competition, we learned to play like professionals. Whe n Sharon Ng and I playe d women’s doubles against Russia, the officials assigned us th e “TV court”, which meant our match was be ing aired across Russia.

Attending the Universi ade games was, no doub t, an opportunity of a lifetime.

Danae Long in action at the Summer Universiade Games in Kazan. (Photograph: Paul Alvarez)

www.badmintonmonthly.com 31

2013 Summer Universiade

by Randy Ma

Sophomore, Johns Hopkins Unive

rsity

This summer, I went with three other badminton players to represent the US at the World University Games in Kazan, Russia. I had always thought the Pan American and World Junior Championships were the highest leve l of badminton that I could achieve. But once I arrived in Kazan, I found that the environment was much like the Oly mpics, with a huge opening ceremony as well as an athletes’ village.

The level of the players was on par with that of the Olympics. Because of this, when I played against these pro fessional players, I did not worry abo ut winning or losing. Our team only had four players, which was the minimum number required to play all events in the team event. Some countries such as Japan and Korea sent three times as many players. I tried to meet as man y players as I could, even trading jackets with a Thai player and a Chinese player.

Before we left for Kazan, we were inte rviewed by several news reporters from San Jose Mercury News, San Fra ncisco Chronicle, and TV channels like KTSF. Hopefully, this interest will lead to more badminton players bein g sent to the World University Games, helping the sport grow even more.

Randy Ma in action at the Summer Universiade Games in Kazan.

(Photograph: Paul Alvarez)

by Sharon Ng

y College Sophomore, Wellesle

World Uniteam competed at the n to in dm ba A US e rallels the In July, th Russia. The WUG pa n, za Ka in ) UG (W versity Games sport events, have ge international multihu e ar th bo — cs pi Olym breathtaking es, and include grand, lag vil ’ es let ath e siv at only all-inclu ain difference being th m e th th wi — ies on m m was opening cere . Our four-person tea UG W e th in te pe m college students co er sent, sparking that Team USA has ev m tea n to in dm ba st the fir newspapers.

TV news stations and cerethe interest of various no doubt the opening s wa UG W e th of rt My favorite pa into the stadium and Team USA marched en wh lly cia pe es y, t crowd I have mon cheers from the bigges ng ni afe de th wi ted ir Putin’s was gree rformance and Vladim pe lar cu ta ec sp a er fireever seen. Aft the torch was lit and as e id pr d an e aw in speech, we watched e night sky. ng pins works exploded in th ded meeting and tradi clu in d ve lo I at th cts her Other aspe countries, watching ot r he ot m fro es let ath with world-class nue!), and explorfree shuttle to each ve a ith (w e liv ts en ev sports or ing the city of Kazan. st professional athletes ain ag n to in dm ba g in Although play l so blessed to ibly challenging, I fee ed cr in s wa os pr g gin have won some emer tigious event (and to es pr a ch su at ted pe Sharon Ng in action at the Summer Universiade have com Games in Kazan. Ng delivered the only US win matches too!). at the quarterfinal against Ukraine. Her opponent Anatasiya Dmytryshyn, had an European Junior Ranking of 10 and a BWF World Ranking of 260.

(Photograph: Paul Alvarez) 32 Badminton Monthly November 2013

2013 Summer Universiade

2013 Summer Universiade Kazan, Russia July 5-11, 2013

Team Competition July 5 Group D USA 0-5 Germany USA 0-5 Japan USA 4-1 Macau July 6 Team Quarterfinals USA 1-3 Ukraine

USA Buasan Long

(MXD) Ukraine 14-21 Natarov 16-21 Zharka (MS)

Ma

19-21 Dmitrishin 17-21

Ng

21-11 Dmytryshyn 18-21 23-21

Ma Buasan

(WS)

(MD)

10-21 Dmitrishin 19-21 Natarov

Men’s Doubles Result 1. KO/LEE (Korea) 2. IVANOV/SOZONOV (Russia) 3. HONG/KIM (Korea) WEI/SINGH (Malaysia)

Women’s Singles Round 1 NG Sharon (USA)

21-11 21-11

MAZRTSHK Melissa (EST)

US badminton athletes and Ukrainian athletes pose in front of the Kazan WUG logo in the athlete village. The flag of each country was raised at the flag ceremony, followed by a dance performance and welcome speech.

(Photograph: Amy Ng)

Round 2 ARIEDA Ningrum (INA)

21-9 21-11

NG Sharon (USA)

Women’s Singles Result 1. SUNG Ji Hyun (Korea) 2. TAI Tzu-Ying (Taipei) 3. YAO Xue (China) BURANAPRASERTSUK P (Thailand)

Women’s Doubles Round 1 Team Competition Result 1. Korea 2. China 3. Thailand

Men’s Singles Round 1 KALJUMAE (EST)

21-18 MA Randy 21-11 (USA)

Men’s Singles Result 1. SAENSOMBOONSUK Tanongsak(Thailand) 2. GAO Huan(China) 3. ZULKARNAIN Iskandar (Malaysia) CHOU Tien-Chen(Taipei)

Men’s Doubles Round 1 HOSHINO/ TAKEUCHI (JPN)

KHLEBKO/PO- 21-12 LIKARPO 21-12 (RUS)

LONG/NG (USA)

Women’s Doubles Result 1. CHANG/KIM (Korea) 2. LUO/TIAN (China) 3. LEE/SHIN (Korea) CHOW/LEE (Malaysia)

Mixed Doubles Round 1 SOZONOV/ 21-3 KHLEBKO 21-12 (RUS)

BUASAN/ LONG

Mixed Doubles Result 1. KIM/KIM (Korea) 2. LIU/TIAN (China) 3. IVANOV/VISLOVA (Russia) CHEN/WANG (Taipei)

21-15 BUASAN/ 21-7 MA(USA) Sharon Ng (left) with Korean player Lee Yong Dae in the badminton practice gym. There were nine practice courts with the same mat as the competition gym.

(Photograph: Amy Ng) www.badmintonmonthly.com 33

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Footwork Front Court

F

ootwork is one of the most important elements in the game of badminton. Both singles and doubles have many ways to run around the court to catch the shuttlecock in play.

Learning and applying the correct footwork is imperative if you want to take your game to the next level. Kowi Chandra, the head coach of Bay Badminton Center in Milpitas, California, teaches us about footworks to the front court.

Editing and photography by Kota Morikawa & James Young

34 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Lesson by

Kowi Chandra from Bay Badminton Center Kowi Chandra (coach)

Former Indonesian National Team member. 2008 USA Adult Nationals Mixed Doubles 1st place. 2012 USA Adult Nationals Men’s Doubles 1st place.

William Cheung (demonstrator)

5-time Pan American Junior. 2012 World Junior Championships.

2013 Kenneth Davidson Sportsmanship Award recipient.

Sharon Ng (demonstrator)

2012 USA Adult Nationals Women’s Singles 2nd place. 2010 USBDF Winter Junior Badminton Internationals 1st place U22 GS.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 35

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Footwork

Front Court

Forehand (right-handed players) This is the movement to the front toward the right side of the court. This 2-step footwork starts with pushing with the right foot and a quick shuffle. Then push off with your left foot for a lunge to reach for the shuttle. The goal is to get to the shuttle as quickly as possible for better shot executions.

Getting ready

36 Badminton Monthly November 2013

One bounce to put the weight on the right foot

Run Forward Steps

2 1

Push with the right foot

Lesson by

Kowi Chandra from Bay Badminton Center

Q. What’s the benefit of knowing and doing footwork?

A. Kowi Chandra: Footwork makes your game much more efficient and saves you a lot of energy.

Having good footwork gives you better control over your opponent and your shots. It’s like this: if you are able to reach the birdie in time, you will make a better shot. The second benefit is it prevents injury. Third, if you master your footwork, you will have a better spacial awareness of the court.

For example: if you usually take three steps to hit the shuttle at the back court, and you sense that the shuttle is still flying a bit far from your position, you should know that the shuttle will go out.

Shuffle your left foot

Push with the left foot

Right foot lunge to reach for the shuttle

Make sure to land with the heel of your right foot

www.badmintonmonthly.com 37

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Footwork

Front Court

Shuffle Left Foot

Shuffle Left Foot

This is another way of the front court footwork to the forehand side. There is no “better� way. It all depends on your preference.

Some prefer this way over other ways because they find this footwork to be more balanced. Regardless of which way you prefer, make sure your shoulders are squared-up facing forward!

38 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Getting ready

Push with your left foot

3

1

2

Right foot slightly step forward

Lesson by

C

n Mis o m m o

Kowi Chandra from Bay Badminton Center

ta k e

Foot Pointing the Wrong Way

When stopping with the lunge, your toes should be pointing at the direction that you are going. If they are not, you risk rolling your ankle and making inconsistent shots because your shoulders are not as squared as they should be.

Start to move your left foot forward

Shuffle your left foot and move it behind your right foot

!

O N

Make sure to land with the heel of your right foot

Make sure to bend your knee and lunge down

www.badmintonmonthly.com 39

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Footwork

Front Court

Forehand– Jump Forward

Jump forward

2

This is a quick offensive move to kill at the front court. Pushing off with your feet for a big jump step so to catch the shot at its highest point for a net kill!

40 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Getting ready

One bounce to put the weight on the right foot

1

Push with your left foot

Lesson by

Kowi Chandra from Bay Badminton Center

Q. What do you think is the most important element in doing footwork toward the front?

A. William Cheung: For the front, I would say the first (initial) step is very important. This is the first reaction, and it is the push off from the back leg to spur movement to the front. If it is to the forehand side, I push off with my left leg. If the bird is hit to my backhand-side, I push off with my right foot to shift my weight towards the left. In other words, I always push off with the opposite foot of where the birdie will be going. It may seem counter-intuitive at first, but once you try it out, it will feel natural.

Get ready to push with your right foot to jump

Jump by pushing off with your right foot

Make sure to land with the heel of your right foot

Make sure to bend your knee and lunge down

www.badmintonmonthly.com 41

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Footwork

Front Court

Backhand (right-handed players) This is the movement to the front towards the left side of the court.

This 2-step footwork starts with pushing off with your right foot, a small step with your left and finishing with a right foot lunge to get to position.

Getting ready

42 Badminton Monthly November 2013

One bounce to put the weight on the right foot

Forward Steps

2

1

Push with the right foot

Lesson by

Kowi Chandra from Bay Badminton Center

istake M n o Comm

Foot Pointing the Wrong Way

Like forehand, when stopping with the lunge, it’s very important that your toes are pointing at the correct direction you are going!

Left foot forward

Push with the left foot

!

O

N

The right foot forward to reach for the shot

Make sure to land with the heel of your right foot

www.badmintonmonthly.com 43

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Footwork

Front Court

Combination– Net Shot & Kill

Jump Step Kill

This movement is very specific and is used when you hit a very tight net shot. Players are always taught to first move back to the center after a shot but in this case, you should only take a small hop back -far enough to be ready for a potential shot to the back court but also close enough to quickly jump to kill the shot at the front.

1

2

Hitting a tight net shot

8

44 Badminton Monthly November 2013

1

3

Ready to move back

9

Push left foot

2

Push back 1 step

10

Start to raise the racket

Jump with right foot

Lesson by

Kowi Chandra from Bay Badminton Center

Q. What do you think is the most important element in the footwork toward the front?

A. Sharon Ng: Moving to the backhand side front is part of basic footwork that I learned early on in my badminton career. The trick to make this effective, however, is to take fewer but more fluid steps. To be able to get ready for the next shot, you should avoid taking too many steps back to the center. This was more difficult for younger players but as they strengthened their legs, the big hop becomes habit. For the combination footwork, it is important to time the jump and kill correctly so that you can hit the birdie high enough. I am still trying to master the timing of movement and contact of this shot.

4

5

Look out for the chance

11

Timing to hit is important

6

Not move back to the center

12

Right foot jump forward

7

Get ready to attack forward

13

Land from the heel

Ready push left foot

14

Make sure to bend knee www.badmintonmonthly.com 45

Christianna’s Athletic Edge

Stretch of the Month

Love Your Hamstrings

by Christianna Aronstam Photograph: Derick Santos

W

hether you’re running around the badminton court, or just sitting behind your desk thinking about your next match, your hamstrings could use some extra love. It not only feels great to stretch this generally tight area, but hamstring flexibility is also extremely important for the health of your back, hips, and knees. Here are six easy and essential stretches that target the backs of your legs. To avoid injury, it’s best to do these stretches at the end of your workout, when your muscles are warm and pliant. All stretches should be held for 30 seconds, and repeated three times.

Christianna Aronstam Christianna is a founder and CEO of Athletic Edge, one of the premier massage therapy groups in California. Since 2006, Athletic Edge has advanced the application of massage therapy to complement the treatments of orthopedic doctors, physical therapists, and athletic trainers from all over the West Coast to help injured clients and athletes reach their full potential. Christianna’s passion is to keep people healthy, happy, and performing at their best during every stage of life, be they recreational athlete or Olympian. She understands the many intricacies associated with individuals who may be competing, training, recovering, or simply seeking a more satisfying level of physical fitness.

Christianna’s Athletic Edge

1

The Hands-Behind-Back Hamstring Stretch

This stretch is good for your hamstrings and perfect for badminton players as it also loosens tight shoulders.

Stand with your feet at hips’ width distance apart. Interlace your hands behind your back. Keeping your legs straight, bend at the hips, tucking in your chin, and bringing your hands over your head. Relax the back of your neck and if the stretch is too intense, release your hands, placing them on the backs of your thighs, and relax your knees. Hold for 30 seconds and slowly roll up to standing.

2

The Hurdler Stretch

This basic stretch is perfect for targeting one hamstring at a time.

Sit on the floor and straighten your left leg in front of you. Bend the right knee, placing the sole of your right foot against your left inner thigh. Fold over your left leg, keeping your back straight. Hold for 30 seconds, and then switch legs.

48 Badminton Monthly November 2013

3

Stretch of the Month

Advanced Standing Hamstring Stretch

If the previous stretches aren’t deep enough for you, then try this variation.

Prop your left heel up on a surface that is a little lower than your hip such as a chair or bench. Flex your foot.

To increase the stretch, bend forward toward your flexed foot, by creasing at your hips. Hold for 30 seconds and switch legs.

4

Forward Bend with Rounded Back

This stretch targets both hamstrings as well as the lower back.

Sit on the floor, extending both legs straight out in front of you, legs together. Fold your torso over your thighs, gently rounding the back but keeping the legs straight. Hold here for 30 seconds and then sit up.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 49

Christianna’s Athletic Edge

Stretch of the Month

5

Reclined Hamstring Stretch

Here’s a relaxing way to stretch one hamstring at a time.

Lie on your back. Raise your left leg as high as you can, keeping your pelvis flat on the ground.

Hold your lower thigh and encourage the leg to move toward your head. Flex your foot to stretch your calf too. To deepen the stretch, place a yoga strap or towel on the ball of -your foot and use your hands to pull the strap toward you. After 30 seconds, switch legs.

6

Scissor-Blades Hamstring Stretch

This hamstring stretch is great if you’re really tight, easy to do anywhere, and safe for injured backs.

Stand with your feet together. Step your right foot back about two feet and bend forward from your hip joint, keeping your back and both legs straight. After holding for 30 seconds, switch sides.

50 Badminton Monthly November 2013

UC Berkeley Smashapalooza VIII

8/17~18, 2013. Berkeley, CA

Andre Alvarez (25)

1. Start with a morning run, do the drill and few games, and eat two bananas, drink coconut water before going to bed.

2. I had a partner who could not serve over the net.

Joanna Chen (18)

1. Sleep early, like 10 p.m.

2. Partner talking to me about what not to do during the game. I rather have the conversation after the game.

Vega Tang (20)

1. Think what shots to make.

2. No communication when my partner makes a lot of mistake and not talking to me.

Q1. What do you do the day before of a tournament as preparation?

Serge Blanchet (25)

1. Relax the night before and no intense activity.

2. Egotistic partner, who tries to a do one-man game, gets too emotional.

Partners are supposed to help each other.

Karine Hsu (18)

1. Think about the strategy and my strength that has been good for the last couple of weeks and capitalize on the strength.

2. Just hitting without thinking about the purpose.

Q2. When you play doubles, what is your biggest pet peeve with your partner?

Joshua Camargo (18)

1. Two hours of practice. Read a book about mental toughness. Eating no junk foods but healthy food. Relax with my family.

2. Partner who hits a shuttlecock in my back.

Peter Chen (18)

1. With the help from my high school coach, I practice about 100 serves, service returns, and footwork.

2. Missing net kills.

George Yip (49)

1. Make a list of mental preparation to win and physical checklist to make sure I have everything I need for the game.

2. Missing serves.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 51

Workout of the Month

HIT & MOVE

FA S

52 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Arthur Ahlswede Master Trainer at 24 Hour Fitness; 3000+ Sessions serviced; NASM Certified Personal Trainer; Certified Performance Enhancement Specialist (PES); Certified Corrective Exercise Specialist (CES); MMA Strength and Conditioning Certified

AS T !

3

SIMPLE EXERCISES

You Can Do at Home to Improve Your Footwork and Deliver a Stronger Smash

by Arthur Ahlswede Photography by Derick Santos

W

hether you are new to fitness or someone who has been working out for a long time, the following exercises, if done right, will improve your shoulder stability and overall balance. These regimens will lengthen and strengthen the muscles along the posterior chain, which in turn will assist in your footwork. www.badmintonmonthly.com 53

Workout of the Month

EXERCISE 1

Inchworm 1

2

BENEFITS - Increases the strength of shoulder muscles and your core for better smashes.

- Good warm up for hamstrings.

- Prevents muscle tears

3

4

Direction 1. Start in standing upright position with feet shoulder width apart. [1] 2. Keep legs straight as you bend down.

Keep hands as close as possible to your feet. [2] 3. Walk hands out one in small steps at a time. Keep legs straight as you go. [3,4,5] 4. Keep walking until push-up position.

Keep core tight in a nice straight line. [6] 5. Walk hands back in small steps one at a time. Back to step 2.

6. Repeat.

54 Badminton Monthly November 2013

5

6

1 For higher intensity - Walk hands out further / elbows on floor. (1, 2). Then back to push up position before walking hands back.

- Hold for longer time in plank position.

- More reps.

Common mistakes - Sagging your hips or raising hips too high. (1, 2)

2

1

2

Things to keep an eye on - Make sure you go through a full range of motion - Do not strain. Form is very important.

- Make sure you take as many small steps as possible as you walk with your hands.

Our recommendation for repetitions: On a fatigue scale of 1-10 with 10 being extremely fatigue, do not exceed 7. What we mean is if doing 2 reps get you to 7 on the scale, stop right there and rest! The last thing we want is someone who wants to get stronger but ends up injuring themselves! Fitness is something that takes a long time to build. It takes hard work and consistency to achieve desired results. Now with that said, let’s start our work out! *Always consult a fitness professional if you have further questions about working out. www.badmintonmonthly.com 55

Workout of the Month

EXERCISE 2

BENEFITS - Improves strength, balance, and coordination for better footwork.

- Stretches and lengthens hamstring.

Single Leg Anterior Reach Direction 1. Stand upright on your left leg. (1) 2. Reach down with right arm while extending right leg backwards. (2) 3. Hold for two seconds. (3) 4. Repeat on left leg.

1

2

For higher intensity - Fold up a yoga mat into a smaller pad and stand on it for an unbalanced surface.

- Stand on a Bosu ball.

- Hold for longer in step 3.

- More reps.

3

Things to keep an eye on - Keep legs straight.

- Bend at waist.

- Maintain balance.

- Focus on body being parallel to the ground with leg fully extended.

56 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Workout of the Month

EXERCISE 3

Balance single leg 3-point touches

BENEFITS - Improves strength, balance, and coordination for better footwork.

- Strengthens quadriceps and glutes.

Direction 1. Begin with the right foot balanced in a single leg squat. (1) 2. Touch the toe of your left foot in front as far as possible. (2) 3. Back to step 1.

4. Touch the toe of your left foot to back as far as possible. (3) 5. Back to step 1.

6. Touch the toe of your left foot to the side as far as possible. (4) 7. Back to step 1.

8. Repeat on opposite leg

1

2

For higher intensity - Fold up a yoga mat into a smaller pad and stand on it for an unbalanced surface.

- Stand on a Bosu ball.

- Squat down lower.

- Hold for longer in each step.

- More reps.

3

4

Things to keep an eye on - Keep head up facing forward throughout the exercise - Maintain balance throughout the movement - Fully extend leg when touching toe to the ground - Do not strain. Form is very important. www.badmintonmonthly.com 57

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Doubles - Short Serve

Editing and Photography by Kota Morikawa & James Young

Hitting a Quality Serve

O

ne of the most important elements in doubles is the serve. The quality of your serve has a huge impact on how the rally will be played out, either to your advantage or disadvantage. In this technical feature, we found Jing Yu Hong (Kate) to give us a lesson on how and where to serve to gain an advantage over your opponent. Kate is a former Chinese National Team Member and she is currently coaching at the East Bay Badminton Association in Emeryville, California.

Lesson by

Jing Yu Hong (Kate) from East Bay Badminton Association Kate Hong (coach)

A former Chinese Junior National Team, Kate Hong now coaches at East Bay Badminton Association in Emeryville, California.

Sarah Chan (demonstrator)

2008 USAB Junior Nationals U19 Mixed Doubles champion, U19 Girls Singles runner-up 2013 USAB National Collegiate Badminton Championships - Mixed Doubles champion.

Adrian Pan (demonstrator)

2010 USAB Junior Nationals U19 Mixed Doubles runner-up. 2010 and 2011 UC Berkeley Smashapalooza AMD champion. 2012 US Adult Nationals Men’s Doubles 5th place.

Nghia Tran (demonstrator)

Helped UC Berkeley Badminton Team win Collegiate Nationals for 3 years while playing as one of the top singles players. Placed fourth in the Collegiate Nationals for singles and third for doubles.

T

he four corners are targets to aim for when serving in doubles (as shown in Figure 1). The short serve is popular amongst higher level players because the goal is to take advantage and go on the offense immediately; a short serve forces your opponent to hit the shot upward, and therefore giving your team the advantage and a high possibility to hit the next shot downward. The high serve (flick serve) is used as an element of surprise in a high level game, or when it’s apparent that the receiver has trouble backing up quickly to make a good shot. The key here is also to keep the receiver guessing and put pressure on them to make a good return.

Server Receiver

[Figure 1] Targeted places to serve in Doubles shown as .

Before serving, make sure to position the shuttle and racket. Serve becomes consistent if the path of the racket moves forward consistently. www.badmintonmonthly.com 59

TECHNICAL FEATURE

Doubles - Short Serve Important Rules

Mis n o m Com

(Source: BWF Laws of Badminton and Regulations)

ta k e

A

Hit the shuttle always below the waist

The whole shuttle should be below the server’s waist at the instant when hit by the server’s racket. The waist is considered an imaginary line round the body, level with the lowest part of the server’s bottom rib. (as shown in picture A)

Racket head facing down when serving

The shaft of the server’s racket at the instant of hitting the shuttle points in a downward direction. (as shown in pictures B-D)

B

Serve in one continuous movement

The movement of the server’s racket shall continue forward from the start of the serve until the serve is delivered.

C

!

O N D

!

O N

Ask Kate How do you prepare after a short serve?

After a short serve, do not drop your racket down. The first thing to do is to keep the racket up and prepare for the return.

How do you prepare after a long serve?

After a long serve, back up and prepare for your opponent’s attack by keeping your racket up. If it is a high quality high serve (deep enough just out of opponent’s reach), it will force him or her to be out of position and have a weak return.

When serving short to an opponent who looks aggressive, how do you prepare yourself mentally?

When serving to an opponent who looks aggressive, pay extra attention to the mental preparation as well as the preparation for their return. Make sure the quality of the serve is high. You can also vary the timing and the placement of your serve, keep your opponent guessing. This way they will have a harder time coming back with a high quality return.

Why is the backhand serve more popular than the forehand?

The main reason why the backhand serve is more popular in Doubles is because of its smaller range of motion. Not only is it easier for beginners to pick up when they first start to learn, but it also creates a faster shuttle speed because of the wrist action, which in turn gives the opponent a harder time to return.

60 Badminton Monthly November 2013

!

!

Lesson by

Jing Yu Hong (Kate) from East Bay Badminton Association

Ask Demonstrators What is your tactics when you serve to: 1. Someone tall?

2. Someone short?

Sarah Chan 1. When I’m serving to someone tall, I try to serve short and make sure my serve is flat. Sometimes I may serve high if they’re standing really close to the service line and have a tendency to rush at the net. If I do a flick serve, I’ll make sure the serve is deep enough so that I won’t get killed, but also in a spot that makes it difficult for them to attack.

2. When I’m serving to someone short, I generally follow the same rules I use against taller opponents. However, I may use more flick serves. It all depends on what kind of shot they like to do when I serve short.

Nghia Tran 1. Serving to a taller opponent could be scary, but I know I need to serve well and trust my partner to make a good shot after.

2. I serve to where I can make my opponent move the most.

Adrian Pan 1. Despite the height, you always want to stay on the offense. Taller does not necessarily mean that they have an advantage. Make your short serve flat enough and your tall opponent will have hard time making a good shot on the return.

2. Even against a short person, serving short is always the best. The only question is, how well does your

opponent control receiving the serve?

Sureyou would like to use their height to their disadvantage by flick serving, But eventually, if the short opponent is explosive enough, they will react right away and send that bird straight back at the server’s face. People like to misuse the flick serve, it should be a secret weapon to throw off rhythm, and not be used as a main serve.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 61

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

An Angel Appears and Changes Robert’s Life!

By: Rocket Mango 62 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

By: Rocket Mango

An Angel Appears and Changes Robert’s Life!

www.badmintonmonthly.com 63

JUMP SMASH 64 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

By: Rocket Mango

An Angel Appears and Changes Robert’s Life!

www.badmintonmonthly.com 65

JUMP SMASH 66 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

By: Rocket Mango

An Angel Appears and Changes Robert’s Life!

www.badmintonmonthly.com 67

JUMP SMASH 68 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

By: Rocket Mango

An Angel Appears and Changes Robert’s Life!

www.badmintonmonthly.com 69

JUMP SMASH 70 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Chapter 1: Feathers of an Angel

By: Rocket Mango

An Angel Appears and Changes Robert’s Life!

www.badmintonmonthly.com 71

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Tournament Calendar & Directory GET OUT THERE AND PLAY National/Local

Junior

International

11/8-10 Margaret Hewitt Memorial 2013 Charlotte Tournament Charlotte, Carolina Contact: jimg1940@aol.com Venue: Hickory Grove Elementary School

11/23-24 New England Junior Open Marblehead, Massachusetts Joan Cayen: cayentjsnc@verizon. net Venue: Marblehead High School

11/6-10 YONEX USA International Orlando, Florida Venue: ClearOne Badminton Centre Orlando Prize Money: $15,000

11/29-12/01 Northern California Regional Burlingame, California Jason Liu: jason@baybadminton. com Venue: Bay Badminton Center

11/5-10 Korea Open Jeonju, Korea Grand Prix Gold

12/14-15 Yonex IBC Open Edison, New Jersey Ronnie Yin: 917-626-8946/info@ ibcusa.org Venue: International Badminton Center Prize Money: $8,000 1/7-11, 2014 Graham/Toms U.S. Senior International Miami Lakes, Florida Venue: Shula’s Hotel and Golf Club 2/14-16, 2014 Dave Freeman Classic 2014 San Diego, CA 3/28-30, 2014 Adult Nationals Boston, Massachusetts Bob Cook: frogs4ever@gmail.com Venue: Boston Badminton Club

Badminton Gyms United States Arizona Mesa

Arizona Badminton Center 2150 W Broadway, Suite 107 (480) 699-2760 www.azbadmintoncenter.com

Phoenix

Phoenix Badminton Center 21430 N. 15th Ln. (602) 666-6169 www.phoenixbadmintoncenter.com

Northern California Burlingame

Bay Badminton Center 1611 Adrian Rd. (650) 692-1611 www.baybadminton.com

Campbell

Bintang Badminton Academy 600 E. Hamilton Ave., Suite 189 (408) 871-1683 www.bintangbadminton.org

Dublin

Bintang Badminton Academy 6780 Sierra Court, Suite I (925) 829-3200 www.bintangbadminton.org

12/27-30 Junior International Trials San Carlos, CA U17 & U19 Venue: Affinity Badminton Club 1/3-5, 2014 USBDF Junior International Championships Orange, California 7/1-6, 2014 Junior Nationals El Monte, CA Widya Susanto Venue: Los Angeles Badminton Club

11/12-17 China Open Shanghai, China Superseries Premier 11/19-24 YONEX-SUNRISE Hong Kong Open Kowloon, Hong Kong Superseries 11/20-24 Scottish Open Glasgow, Scotland Grand Prix

11/26-12/01 KUMPOO Macau Open Macau, Macau Grand Prix Gold 12/2-8 YONEX-SUNRISE Vietnam Open Grand Prix Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam 12/11-15 BWF Superseries Finals KL, Malaysia Superseries ranking 1/7-12, 2014 Korea Open Seoul, Korea Superseries 1/14-19, 2014 MAYBANK Malaysia Open Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Superseries Premier

11/21-24 IV Internacional Mexicano International Series Guadalajara, Mexico

To submit your event for listing, email at editorial@badmintonmonthly.com.

Also contact us for advertising deals at ads@badmintonmonthly.com

Emeryville

San Carlos

El Monte

Fremont

South San Francisco

San Gabriel Valley Badminton Club 9255 Telstar Ave. (626) 307-4650 www.sgvbc.net

United Badminton Club 43901 Boscell Rd. (510) 656-2582 www.unitedbadminton.com

Bay Badminton Center 1404 San Mateo Ave. (650) 588-2088 www.baybadminton.com

Menlo Park

Sunnyvale

Manhattan Beach

Milpitas

Union City

Orange

Bay Badminton Center 1191 West Montague Expressway (408) 942-2888 www.baybadminton.com

Southern California

Pomona

Eastbay Badminton Association 4230 Hubbard St. (510) 655-8989 www.eastbaybadminton.com

CBA Badminton 46049 Warm Springs Blvd.

(510) 438-0445 www.cabadminton.com

Synergy Badminton Club 190 Constitution Dr. (650) 838-9318 www.synergybadminton.com

Bintang Badminton Academy 746 S. Milpitas Blvd.

(408) 935-9915 www.bintangbadminton.org

Rancho Cordova

Northern California Badminton Club 2421 Mercantile Dr. (916) 790-2208 www.norcalbadminton.com

78 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Affinity Badminton Club 403 Quarry Rd. (650) 752-8071 www.affinitybadminton.com

Bintang Badminton Academy 245 S. Spruce Ave., Suite 700 (650) 624-0002 www.bintangbadminton.org

Bintang Badminton Academy 1365 Geneva Dr. (408) 541-1837 www.bintangbadminton.org

Z-Badminton 33540 Central Ave. (510) 487-9282 www.zbadmintontrainingcenter.com

Arcadia

Arcadia Badminton Club 12336 Lower Azusa Rd. (626) 672-0113 www.abadminton.com

Los Angeles Badminton Club 10410 Valley Blvd.

(626) 279-9919 www.labadmintonclub.com

Lakewood

Badminton Center Court 3699 Industry Ave. (562) 426-9299 www.badmintoncentercourt.com

Manhattan Beach Badminton Club 516 18th St. (310) 545-9052 www.mbbadmintonclub.com

Orange County Badminton Club 1432-A N. Main St. (714) 639-6222 www.ocbadmintonclub.com

San Gabriel Valley Badminton Club 3410 Pomona Blvd.

(909) 839-1939 www.sgvbc.net

Directory Florida

Canada

ClearOne Badminton Center 4141 N. John Young Parkway (407) 730-3596 www.clearonebadminton.com

Alberta

Su Badminton Club 4140B Sladeview Crt., #6 (905) 615-9996 www.subadmintonclub.com

Hawaii

Clearone Badminton Centre 1853-120 Ave., NE (403) 265-3886 www.clearonebadminton.com

RA Centre Badminton Club 2451 Riverside Dr. (613) 733-5100 www.rabadminton.com

Honolulu Badminton Club 1336 Dillingham Blvd.

(808) 354-0146 www.honolulubadminton.com

Sunridge Badminton Centre 401-33rd St., NE (403) 263-9222 www.sunridgebadminton.com

Toronto

Illinois

British Columbia

Midwest Badminton Club 2019 Corporate Ln., Suite 103 (630) 888-0721 www.mbadminton.com

Kelowna Badminton Club 1098 Richter St (250) 763-4616 www.kelownabadminton.ca

Woodbridge

Vancouver

Orlando

Honolulu

Naperville

Calgary

Kelowna

Midwest Badminton Club 1020 Davey Rd., Ste. 600 (630) 783-1910 www.mbadminton.com

Vancouver Racquets Club 4867 Ontario St (604) 874-0242 www.vrc.bc.ca

Massachusetts

Richmond

Westborough

Boston Badminton Club 169 Flanders Rd (508) 329-1710 www.bostonbadminton.com

Nevada

Las Vegas

Las Vegas Badminton 3655 W. Sunset Rd., Suite D (702) 776-6720

New York

College Point

CP Badminton 20-24 119th St. (347) 688-0650 www.cpbadminton.com

North Tonawanda

Rally Niagara Badminton Club 875 Eggert Dr. (716) 381-4571 www.rallyniagarabadminton.com

Flushing

New York Badminton Club 132-63 34th Ave (646) 271-3228 www.newyorkcitybadminton.com

Oregon

Hillsboro

Portland Badminton Club 7275 NW Evergreen Pkwy., Building F #250 (503) 640-8659 www.portlandbadmintonclub.com

Clearone Badminton Centre – Browngate #100-4351 No.3 Rd. (604) 278-0221 www.clearonebadminton.com Clearone Badminton Centre – Leslie #138-4551 No.3 Rd. (604) 231-8281 www.clearonebadminton.com Richmond Pro Badminton Centre 130-5800 Minoru Blvd.

(604) 231-0999 www.richmondprobadminton.com

Ontario Aurora

Machi Badminton Training Center 159 Don Hillok Dr., Unit 2 (905) 726-1700 www.machibadminton.com

Richmond Hill

Flying Dragon Badminton Club 30 Vogell Rd., Unit 3 (905) 918-1318 www.flyingdragonbadminton.com

Markham

Everyday Badminton 480 Hood Rd., Unit 1 (905) 604-6698 www.everydaybadminton.com KC Professional Badminton Club 2680 Fourteenth Ave., Unit 3-6 (905) 766-4561 www.kcbadmintonclub.com

Virginia

Lee’s Badminton Professional Training Centre 80D Centurian Dr., Unit 3-9 (905) 940-0703 www.leesbadminton.ca

K2 Badminton 45805 Woodland Rd. (571) 223-6006 www.k2badminton.com

Mandarin Badminton Club 500 Esna Park Drive, Unit 8 (905) 940-0600 www.mandarinbadminton.com

Washington

Su Badminton Club 170 Shields Court, Unit 1 (905) 752-6857 www.subadmintonclub.com

Sterling

Bellevue

Bellevue Badminton Club 13405 SE 30th St., Suite 1C (425) 562-2950 www.bellevuebadminton.com

Seattle

Seattle Badminton Club 10858 117th Place NE (425) 889-5958 www.seattlebadminton.com

Mississauga

Lee’s Badminton Professional Training Centre 6597 Kitimat Rd., Unit 1 (905) 819-8018 www.leesbadminton.ca

Toronto Granite Club 2350 Bayview Ave. (416) 449-8713 www.graniteclub.com

Saskatchewan Saskatoon

Riverside Badminton & Tennis Club 645 Spadina Crescent W (306) 242-5584 www.saskatoonriverside.com

Badminton Stores United States California Arcadia

Wayne Sporting Supplies 4105 E. Live Oak Ave., Ste. #B (626) 821-0676 www.waynesporting.com

Cupertino

Racket Supply 10570 S. De Anza Blvd.

(408) 873-0188 www.racketsupply.com

Encinitas

San Diego Badminton Supply 1343 Encinitas Blvd.

(888) 223-6468 www.badminton.net

Escondido

Kentucky Louisville

Louisville Badminton Supply 1313 Lyndon Ln. Suite 103 (502) 426-9526 www.angelfire.com/biz/lbs/current/index.html

Maryland Rockville

Supreme Sports Supply (301) 924-4918 www.supremesportssupply.com

Massachusetts Paxton

NRC Sports 603 Pleasant St. (800) 243-5033 www.nrcsports.com

Michigan

Union Lake

Muqueem Sports (248) 344-0744 www.muqueemsports.com

Canada Ontario

Hamilton

Baddymania 777 King Street West (905) 920-9986 www.baddymania.com

Ottawa

Racquet Source (888) 789-3116 www.racquetsource.com

Toronto

Brown’s Sports 2447 Bloor St. West (416) 763-4176 www.brownssports.com

Online Sports 2121 Chablis Court, Ste 100 (800) 856-2638 www.onlinesports.com

Max Sports 4675 Steeles Ave. E, Unit 1C18 (416) 321-8168 www.maxsports.ca

Milpitas

Vaughan

Badminton Superstore 16 Corning Ave. www.ebadminton.stores.yahoo.net Racket Supply 59 Dempsey Rd. (510) 962-3358 www.racketsupply.com

San Diego

Digisports 5805 Mission Gorge Rd., Ste. #B (619) 283-3650 www.digisports4u.com

San Jose

ASBY 392 North Capitol Ave. (800) 995-ASBY www.asbysports.com

MJ Strings 1 Thornhill Woods Dr. (416) 725-1422 www.mjstrings.ca

Windsor

LY Sports 1315 Wyandotte St. E. (519) 982-4461 www.lysports.com

Quebec Montreal

Racket Sports Montreal (514) 830-8878 www.racketsportsmontreal.ca

Sunnyvale

Badminton Alley 1237 South Mary Ave. (408) 746-0646 www.badmintonalley.com

Illinois

Naperville

Badminton Warehouse (800) 650-0562 www.badmintonwarehouse.com

To add your organization for listing, email at editorial@badmintonmonthly.com.

Also contact us for advertising deals at ads@badmintonmonthly.com

www.badmintonmonthly.com 79

Evenings with Coach Dick Ng #1 Coach Dick Ng devoted 39 years of his life towards coaching badminton in the Bay Area. Having coached three-time Olympian Howard Bach, and one time Olympians Ben Lee, Joy Kitzmiller and Chris Jogis when they were upcoming junior players. Through his countless lessons over the years, Coach Ng taught his students not only how to play badminton, but also how to become a good person. Coaching more than 1,200 total students over his lifetime, needless to say, he has changed many lives. As a player, Coach Ng was ranked first in Singles, Doubles, Mixed in Northern California from 1966-1972. We speak to Coach Dick Ng about his history and philosophy.

From Burma to the US Coach Ng was born in Burma and started playing badminton when he was 13. Inspired by Burma’s national champion, he quickly became a regular, training with the national team. He immigrated to the US for political reasons six months later.

Ng Hits the Bay Area How was training with the team?

I was always the last to finish when they had a conditioning run outside in the upper 90 degree temperature. I sparred with women players, who beat me up all the time, but that was how I learned. I would always watch how those players moved and hit and tried to copy their moves. Their backhand was so elegant. It was something I really tried to copy.

And you moved to San Francisco. How was your career in your early years in the US? My uncle helped me a lot and took me to badminton gyms and tournaments. My first tournament was at the YMCA in San Francisco in 1965. I won the tournament. The runner-up player became a very good soccer player after that.

How did you start playing badminton?

I used to play soccer, but my eyesight got bad. I needed an alternative sport. I’ve always played backyard badminton from six in the morning when there was no wind. I was inspired to play harder when I saw a professional badminton player from Mexico in action when he was visiting Burma’s national champion.

How did the experience turn out?

It was in a gym with high ceilings, and I could hear the cool sounds of birdies being hit. After watching the game, I wanted to get better and learn how to play organized badminton.

I joined the Rail Road Badminton Club, which was sponsored by the Rail Road Company in Burma. There was one court dedicated to the national players. One day, the national champion asked me to play and gave me a 10-point handicap for a 15-point game. I dived on to the cement court and gave it everything I had without any footwork. The champion, of course, beat me, but he liked my attitude and started to teach me. Then I started to go to the gym every day and trained with the national team.

80 Badminton Monthly November 2013

The Northern California Junior National was held at Berkeley High School every year for three different age categories: under 13, 15 and 18 years old. I won the triple crown at my first attempt under 15 years old. The tournament organizers asked me not to play multiple events after I swept all the events three years in a row. I think the tournament directors wanted other players to have a chance to win.

I just had too many titles.

I was very passionate about the game. I would watch and hang out with good badminton players and went to the clinic to learn the sport, but I really never had formal coaching, except for the six months in Burma when I was doing basic training with the team.

Did you have any rivals?

I did. At the UC Davis tournament when I was 16 years old. I played in the Open category. (There used to be just two categories.

Open for any player and Novice for beginners) Andy Gouw (regional and national Coaching Director for USAB from 2004 to 2012 and a founder of Asby Sports in San Jose) was my long-time nemesis in the open division. We played a long game. We were running until we felt we were ready to drop dead. It was not a power game, but more like a fitness game.

Lots of drops and clears. Whoever kept the birdie in play won.

There were also foreign students attending UC Berkeley, Chico State, and UC Davis from Thailand, India, and Japan. They were pretty good players. There wasn’t anyone who trained, but when they played, they played hard and tried to win. Andy and I would always go from place to place to practice and play each other.

Andy was my toughest opponent.

To be continued in next issue.

Dick Ng (left) with Andy Gouw after the final match of the 1969 South San Francisco Open Tournament. They played numerous games back in 1960s and 70s.

(Photo Courtesy of Andy Gouw)

MY BADMINTON LIFE

- Q&A WITH AN EVERYDAY BADMINTON PLAYER -

Jack Forbes Actor/Lawyer/Writer, 53 Playing since 2011 Long Beach, CA

Interview by Kota Morikawa

Jack Forbes has acted in four Super Bowl commercials in the past and plays Dell Cooper, a recurring character on TNT’s SouthLAnd, but most-importantly, he hopes to someday hit shuttlecocks for a movie or a TV series.

Any chance you integrate badminton into your acting career?

I am always looking for a way to integrate my sports background into acting and writing and badminton is no exception. Unfortunately, so far I’ve never seen an acting role where the background of the character is that he is a badminton player or coach. But as I say this, someone somewhere is probably writing that character into the plot of the next episode of Castle.

What got you interested in badminton originally?

Well, after a really negative experience about 10 years ago when a Malaysian friend of mine ran me around the court to show me how good he was, I actually had a very positive first experience at Badminton Center Court facility on October 6, 2011 in El Monte. I didn’t have a racket or birdies or the proper shoes, just shorts a tee shirt and tennis shoes. But the people were really friendly and supportive and I had a fun time.

You remember the exact date?

Well, it’s the day after my birthday, and that helps, but I remember the date because the next night, I had a date with a Thai girl I met who enjoyed badminton. She asked if I played and of course, I said “Yes!” and so we had a date, but I wanted to actually be sort of current on a badminton court before my date.

TRAINING TO PLAY SOLID D LEVEL THIS YEAR IN TOURNAMENTS He tries to balance his game between power and drop-shots, using a lot more drives and drops than clears in order to take the smash away from his opponents.

How did the date go?

When she picked up the birdie effortlessly with the racket, I knew I was in trouble.

Any life changes after starting to play badminton?

I started badminton about six months before getting my black belt in Chinese Kenpo Karate from Seventh Degree Black Belt David Brock. Badminton helped keep me in top physical shape for my black belt test in June 2012, which I passed. Some of the same hand-eye coordination required in karate is essential in badminton and the two sports go hand-in-hand.

What do you like most about badminton?

There are so many great aspects to the sport.

Generally, with a few exceptions, the people who play are quite friendly and willing to help players coming up through the ranks. But for me, another great attribute of this sport is that usually, there are plenty of players to play games with. A lot of my friends have family or job responsibilities or just get a bit sedentary in their lifestyles and they’re not available any longer to play softball, go surfing, mountain biking, snow skiing, you name it. But badminton draws a group of people who love a really active challenging sport. So you end up having a big base of friends to play with and games can get really intense.

Have you played in many tournaments?

A few so far. My first tournament was at Arcadia Badminton Club. It was a learning experience to say the least. My partner and I almost won a mixed doubles, level “D,” match.

It went to a third set?

Yes, but I didn’t know how to do a flick serve over the receiver’s head. He jumped the final serve and we lost the third game of the match.

Do you train now in badminton?

Yes. Badminton is one of those sports which can be counter-intuitive, and what may work in tennis or racquetball, for example, just isn’t workable in badminton. Without training, I’d constantly be reinforcing bad habits and my progress as a player would be seriously slowed down.

Any closing comments?

Only that badminton is so fantastic. Of all the sports I’ve played at a high level, badminton is probably the most challenging, most physically demanding and fastest. If more Americans had any idea how amazing badminton is to play, we’d have a lot fewer sports-spectators and a lot more sports-participants.

www.badmintonmonthly.com 81

JUNIOR PLAYER SPOT LIGHT LAUREN LAM (10) Starting age: 8 Trains at: Synergy Badminton Club (Menlo Park, CA)

I am a Fig hter !

Just a little over two years ago Lauren Lam of Daly City, California started to hold a badminton racket on a regular basis. Now she already has an impressive record of achievements on her resume. She has won two gold and one silver medal for both the USA Badminton Junior National and Pan Am Junior Championships in the U11 category.

How did you start playing badminton?

My dad took me to a badminton gym when I was eight and a half, and I did not want to leave the gym. It was fun to hit the birdie!

How many days do you practice?

If there is a lot of school work, one or two days a week.

If there is no school work, I play three days.

Do you practice extra at home?

Yes, I work on my wrist with the badminton grip without the head which has a heavy metal thing on it.

What part of badminton do you like?

Hitting the birdie consistently.

What is your favorite shot?

Smash because I can use my power.

Which event do you like the most? Singles, doubles, mixed?

Singles. It is exciting. I can

have more of a work out.

What’s the best thing being a badminton player?

I can have fun. I can see my friends or opponents making mistakes and I can giggle at them.

What is your goal for your badminton career?

I want to go to the Olympics and become a world champion.

What practice do you like?

All of them!

If you were to hit clear shots back and forth, how long do you think you can hit for without making a mistake?

10-15 shots.

You’ve been to Mexico to compete, what country would you like to visit next?

I want to go to Guatemala because there is the Pan Am Junior tournament next year.

How did you play better than your opponents at both the Junior National and Pan Am

82 Badminton Monthly November 2013

Junior Championships?

I out sped them. I hit faster shots, so my strategy worked.

They were not ready for it.

achieved?

Listen to parents and coaches. Work hard and never give up.

Do you get nervous when you compete?

It depends on the situation.

When I am losing, I concentrate harder. When I am winning, I get overexcited and careless.

What is the greatest thing you have ever learned through playing badminton?

Having fun. Being patient.

Who is your favorite badminton player? And why?

Wang Yihan (of China) because she is mentally tough and really good. Lin Dan (of China) because he is two time Olympic champions and is tough and play really smart.

Any players you want to compete against?

Wang Yihan. The score may be 5-21.

Who are your rivals?

All the Junior girl badminton players, they are all very good.

What advice would you give to younger players to achieve what you have

Have you played any sports before?

Volleyball, basketball, swimming, and ballet.

What food do you like to eat before, during, and after playing badminton?

Before: raspberry. During: granola bars. After: Oreo cookie ice cream or mint chocolate chip ice cream.

How many new friends have you made through playing badminton?

A lot from everywhere.

What are three words that describe you?

Awesome. Smart. Fighter.

When I am losing 2 points behind, I always fight back hard.

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