SEA games....

[bigredlemon]

http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2004/2/2/sports/7228246&sec=sports

Badminton gets the chop in favour of..... (get this)... baseball... :rolleyes:




BAM, FAM in a huff after football and badminton get the chop

PETALING JAYA: The exclusion of football from the SEA Games for the first time in the 45-year history of the regional carnival, had FA of Malaysia vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Ibrahim Saad florid with anger yesterday.

The former national team manager said it was a ridiculous decision to leave football out from Games and felt that it would not do well for the development of the sport in the region.

Also omitted has been another Olympic sport, badminton. In their place, arnis, baseball, boxing for women, dance sport and triathlon (with duathlon) have been included.

“I think the SEA Games Federation (SGF) should seriously look into the direction of this biennial event,” said Ibrahim.

“The priority should be on the major sports and not some weird events like kicking shuttlecock or top spinning.''

He said the FAM and all other Asean countries which are in favour of having football in the SEA Games should consider other alternatives if hosts Philippines were serious about omitting the sport.

“The Asean Football Federation (AFF) is one good avenue and all members should join hands and continue with the healthy tradition by hosting the Under-23 competition without fail.

“We have a tradition and let's hope Philippines will reconsider the decision,'' said Ibrahim.

FAM secretary Datuk Dell Akbar Khan was equally surprised. But he was not too shaken up about it.

“Frankly, we are surprised because football has always been in the list of sports competed in the SEA Games. We will appeal to have football included,” said Dell.

“We are not the only country affected by the decision. I believe that football-playing nations such as Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar will also appeal the decision. Therefore, we will have a lot of support,” said Dell.

Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) secretary P. Ganga Rao, meanwhile, was caught totally off guard with the sport's omission from the Games.

“This is definitely a big surprise. I do not recall a time when badminton was not a sport in the SEA Games. Badminton has always been associated with the Sout-East Asian region,” said Ganga.

“The Philippines hosted the SEA Games in 1991 and badminton was included then. It was a great success and I do not know why it must be scrapped now. But we will appeal,” he added.

The Games, he said, should not be a mockery.

“Two of the world's biggest badminton powerhouses (Malaysia and Indonesia) are from the South-East Asian region. On top of that, this is an Olympic sport. I think the time has arrived to put a stop to all this. Sports that have gained recognition at world level should be fixed in the SEA Games. There should a ground rule for this. This charade must come to an end,” said Ganga.

[Loh]

This is indeed a sad state of affairs. Clearly the host country, or for that matter the host countries in the past, are thinking in terms of the number of gold medals that they obtain from their favourite sports and dropping those that they think they don't stand a chance of winning medals, even when such sports are included in the previous SEA Games or the Olympics.

Just not too long ago, a report by one of our posters gave a promising picture of the popularity of badminton in the Philippines. And now their sports authorities, for selfish reasons, have turned the clock back for these enthusiasts!

Granted that badminton is relatively new to the Filipinos, but they must not forget that Southeast Asia is the powerhouse for world badminton, with Indonesia and Malaysia at the apex. Instead of promoting the game in their own country and allowing their aspirants that rare opportunity to spar with world-class players, the officials chose to promote sports that the country is strong in but are relatively unpopular in the other SE Asian countries. Some of these sports are just indigenous sports like shuttlecock kicking and top-spinning.

I'm sure the soccer and badminton authorities from the other SE Asian countries will protest strongly. Let's hope the local Philippines Badminton Association will also make a case to have the game reinstated in the programme. And let's hope that the local badminton fraternity will also petition for its inclusion.

[quagmire]

you can just imagine how us badminton enthusiasts here feel. we've heard about this news since late last year but we're still hoping they'll reconsider. ive heard if there are enough countries who lobby for the sport, in can be included in the sea games. personally, i think the philippine sports commission is also keeping things silent. perhaps afraid of the retaliation if news actually breaks out.