TORONTO—February 27, 2017—This past weekend’s 16-17 Black Knight Badminton Ontario Jr HP A Series #6 saw 120 athletes from 18 different clubs hit the court at the Granite Club in mid-town Toronto. Players from as far north as Peterborough, as far south as Windsor, and as far west as Woodstock gathered to compete in U15 and U19 matches on Saturday and Sunday.
BADMINTON BOOM FELT AT 16-17 BLACK KNIGHT BADMINTON ONTARIO JR HP A SERIES #6
Press Release Monday, February 27, 2017
For Immediate Release
Badminton boom felt at 16-17 Black Knight Badminton Ontario Jr HP A Series #6 and across the province
TORONTO—February 27, 2017—This past weekend’s 16-17 Black Knight Badminton Ontario Jr HP A Series #6 saw 120 athletes from 18 different clubs hit the court at the Granite Club in mid-town Toronto. Players from as far north as Peterborough, as far south as Windsor, and as far west as Woodstock gathered to compete in U15 and U19 matches on Saturday and Sunday.
Mike de Belle, Head Badminton Coach at Toronto’s Granite Club, spoke about how weekend tournaments like this increase the profile of the sport.
“For my competitive kids – and even for my recreational athletes – weekends like this always give them a chance to see a higher level that they can aim for, as well the things they might need to aim for. It gives them focus. You definitely see their game rise. They start to really concentrate on different skills, and they pick up different things”.
With 300 junior athletes and 160 adult players to oversee, de Belle admits his numbers within the Granite Club are big, and the badminton program has evolved quite a bit in the 25 years he has been there.
“Numerically, there are more and more athletes playing (across Canada). We have 120 athletes ready to play in the tournament this weekend, and we couldn’t take any more players. We were at capacity. Clubs are exploding across Ontario – and the athletes we’re seeing are better and better. The province gets a lot of players coming in from elsewhere, too – places like China, Thailand, Indonesia – and all of a sudden Canadian-born players have to up their game in order to compete against these international athletes who are now living and training on Canadian soil.”
Jeslyn Chow is one such Toronto-born athlete who is benefiting from Canada’s increasingly ambitious competition. One of the weekend’s Double Crown winners, Chow, spoke to Badminton Ontario’s Sarah Miller about her season so far.
“When I win, it feels good. And when I lose, it’s an opportunity for me to learn from the mistakes I’ve made. I know that everything I’ve learned in training has been something that I’ve been able to put to use in tournaments. My coach (Kevin Cao, KCBC) really motivates me in training, he focuses on the specifics, and he teaches me new skills all the time. Tournaments like this one offer a variety of people for me to play against. I also get to practice my skills, and all the things I’ve learned in training or in private lessons.”
The weekend’s Double Crown winners were:
Jeslyn Chow (KCBC)
Ivan Li (KCBC)
Rachel Chan (Lee’s Badminton)
Reza Rhommadon (Mandarin Badminton)
Jailyn Joensen (KCBC)
Final results have been posted on the Badminton Ontario website.
Badminton Ontario would like to thank Black Knight for its continued sponsorship of the Black Knight Junior A and Junior B circuits. Registration for the 16.17 BLACK KNIGHT Badminton Ontario Jr HP A Series #7 – KCBC is open until March 3, 2017.
Badminton Ontario (BON) is a not for profit amateur sport organization responsible for badminton within the province of Ontario. Badminton Ontario’s vision is to connect with all athletes participating in badminton in Ontario, inspire athletes to cherish badminton and establish it as their sport for life.
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For more information, please contact: Sarah Miller, Badminton Ontario, at saraheamiller@sympatico.ca
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