Badminton Australia (BA) is the top governing body for badminton in Australia[1]. It is committed to promoting the awareness and development of badminton within Australia and is also responsible for the management of international badminton relations + events. Junior events such as the June Bevan Teams Event or CP Maddern Trophy with their respective Australasian Championships, along with the Australian Closed Championships are also organised and run by Badminton Australia.
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History
Badminton has been existent in Australia since the early 1900s[2], especially within regions in Victoria. The official Australian Badminton Association was formed in 1932, and shortly after, Australia became the 11th member of the International Badminton Federation. In 1936, it founded the development of the Oceania Badminton Confederation alongside New Zealand[3]. This is now known as Badminton Oceania.
The current national office for BA resides in Melbourne, Victoria.
Achievements
Australia is yet to be a competitive nation in the field of badminton, in the context of current Asian and European/Scandinavian dominance[4]. Its best achievement to this date has been at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where Anna Lao reached the quarterfinals in the ladies singles. Lao also partnered Rhonda Cator to reach the quarterfinals of the women's doubles event as well.
When commenting on Australian players at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, BA's Chief Executive Paul Brettell has stated that 'A bad draw will see [the Australian players] out after their first game'[5] and that 'Australia's greatest achievement is just qualifying for the event'. These statements reflect the current status of badminton within Australia.
Further, according to the Sydney Morning Herald, badminton was one of just 2 Australian sports (the other being Rugby Sevens) not to win a medal at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games[6]
Recent performances at the 2008 Olympics have reinforced this viewpoint, with all Australians knocked out of their respective first matches [7].
Comparisons
It is interesting to note that rivals New Zealand have produced bronze medallists Daniel Shirley and Sara Petersen in the mixed doubles event at the 2005 IBF World Championships[8]. This is a rough indicator that badminton in New Zealand is currently of a much higher standard than Australia, and also mirrors the growth of the sport there as well.
A similar achievement from BA would be required to boost the popularity of the sport in Australia[citation needed].
Solutions Undertaken
References
- ^ Australian Government Culture and Recreation Portal website details
- ^ Brief history of Australian badminton
- ^ History from Badminton Australia
- ^ Scroll down to Asia dominates the sport
- ^ Badminton hopes rely on lucky draw
- ^ SMH: Hallam breaks jinx to go one better
- ^ Badminton Results at the 2008 Beijing Olympics
- ^ USA Badminton Website: 2005 World Championships Info
See also
External links
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