I started off by saying this year's Singapore Open will be the best ever. And it did not disappoint!

At that time, it was the unprecedented vast array of badminton stars that was to grace the occasion that made me say that. And it coincided with IOC's 117th Session in Singapore to decide on the host country for the 2012 Summer Olympics. Indeed, apart from IBF officials like Dep President, Punch Gunalan, I could also see the ex-President of the IOC, Mr Juan Antonio Samarauch.

But at the end of it all, the event had surpassed most expectations.

Spectators

Starting with a scant attendance during the qualifying rounds the crowd soon swelled to about 5,000 during the quarter finals and crescendoed to an all-time record of over 8,000 even when no Singaporeans qualified for the finals. That was a fantastic response and it clearly showed that Singaporeans will support quality events.

Audience participating was the best on finals day as many made quite a din with their balloon sticks and bare hands, clapping them in unison to the rhythmic initiatives from the loudspeakers. No rowdiness nor obtrusive shouting was encountered yet there was clearly a sign of appreciation for the effort that the players made on court. Still the China flag and big Chinese characters adorn the galleries from time to time.

As to food and drinks, Cheers, who was one of the sponsors, provided a more varied range of food and drinks at reasonable prices compared to previously. Another sponsor, Tiger, supplied beer.

Despite its age, SIS has always been a pleasant sports venue with great ambience, airconditioning and proper lighting. The lobby which housed the catering outlets and sports stalls, however, seemed a little congested because of the record crowd during the intervals. The recent renovations, especially on the refurbishment of the seats, will prolong SIS's life until a new indoor stadium is built in the vicinity. However, a leak on the roof was spotted during one match and this has to be repaired. Certainly a much better venue than most other stadiums in the region that I have visited.

I shall end this part of my 'Impressions' with the following pics:

Nice pics and good coverage during the Aviva Open!

Nice pics and good coverage during the Aviva Open!

Thank you my friend!
I can't help asking you how on earth you managed to post such beautiful pics on the Aviva Open when you were elsewhere (in Manila, I believe) during the tournament? ;)

nice sum up there loh.. a few more pics to add...

Technical & Related Aspects

Unfortunately, I spent most of my time at the venue itself and I could not find fault with what I saw in general. The sound system was good, the graphics and info supplied on two big screens were helpful. The background info on the players was also useful and an attempt had been to show the points scored over time in graphic form. However, they have not found a reliable system to record the speed of the smash.

There were two live telecast days for the semi-finals and finals. But having viewed a little of the recording of the proceedings and sunshi's pics on TV, I think they have improved on their camera techniques and graphics. They have also done some homework to provide TV viewers with some background introductory information like the ranking of the players, their head-to-head meetings, their journey to the final, their past performance at the world stage, etc. There were also charts and graphics to provide a more varied presentation.

At the venue itself, many cameras were at work. Two cameras were on either end of the baseline to determine the landing "in or out" of the shuttlecock. One tiny one was placed at net height to amplify the movement of net shots in slow motion. Two cameramen were pointing their equipment on players at either side of the court for close-ups and lateral or horizontal shootings. At one corner of the court another cameraman was on hand. And overhead, in a special room high above the spectators, yet another camera was working constantly.

But the commentary over TV was nothing spectacular or interesting. I believe the commentator is a generalist and is not particularly proficient in the badminton game, in my opinion. I did not see any interviews nor invitations to players to comment on the proceedings. But as I've said I haven't quite gone through all the recorded tapes yet.

I believe that the reporters' needs had been adequately satisfied.

The following pics show some details of the camera scene and the graphics appearing on the big screens:

It is amazing just by seeing these pictures. I am dreaming that if Toronto could ever host one badminton tournament like the SP open, and I definitely would go. :o

Extremely good coverage, Loh! It is almost the same as my impression of the tournament.

I've only been at two badminton championships so far, but I can tell that compared to Indonesia Open, Aviva Singapore Open is much better in almost all aspects. First of all, the stadium is much cleaner (not much to say about that because Singapore is generally extremely clean). Second of all, the whole tournament is much better organised and it's way more creative. I was so much impressed by the background information of all the semifinalists and finalists on the two big screens inside the stadium. It was very useful and, in my opinion, they were really putting effort in giving the best to all the spectators. On the final day, there was even a MC, and it made the whole thing more exciting. He made the audience feel more into the tournament by letting us having some fun with all the bangers. They even hired drummers to heaten things up.

All in all, this year's SG Open is one of the best experiences in my life. If it is possible, I wouldn't hesitate to visit the same event next year!!!

Nice description of the SO 2005 Loh.

I have the same views and in one word the SO can be described as a grand success due to it's total 'proffesionalism'

Extremely good coverage, Loh! It is almost the same as my impression of the tournament.

I've only been at two badminton championships so far, but I can tell that compared to Indonesia Open, Aviva Singapore Open is much better in almost all aspects. First of all, the stadium is much cleaner (not much to say about that because Singapore is generally extremely clean). Second of all, the whole tournament is much better organised and it's way more creative. I was so much impressed by the background information of all the semifinalists and finalists on the two big screens inside the stadium. It was very useful and, in my opinion, they were really putting effort in giving the best to all the spectators. On the final day, there was even a MC, and it made the whole thing more exciting. He made the audience feel more into the tournament by letting us having some fun with all the bangers. They even hired drummers to heaten things up.

All in all, this year's SG Open is one of the best experiences in my life. If it is possible, I wouldn't hesitate to visit the same event next year!!!

I'm so glad you enjoyed yourself and we certainly look forward to your next visit. :p

One thing bad which is not mentioned is the organiser reserved all the good view seats to those corporate package audience. And worse is they don't turn up and those seats were empty.

The organiser should not indicate free seating next time if they want to do that if not sell those tickets at different price for different view like concerts.

One thing bad which is not mentioned is the organiser reserved all the good view seats to those corporate package audience. And worse is they don't turn up and those seats were empty.

The organiser should not indicate free seating next time if they want to do that if not sell those tickets at different price for different view like concerts.

for the finals, i think the corporate seats were mostly taken up so can't complain, but the semi-finals and earlier it was far worse, with entire sections of good seats totally empty.

is there someone we can give feedback to on this?

Which is why I am so piss off and rather stay at home to watch TV on the final even though I purchased the season ticket.:mad:

RESERVED SEATS

the media take too much spaces at good view seats at court 3. most of the time there isnt even any single journalist doing their job. some are sleeping, some are browsing the net.

PLAYERS

too many imported players are playing for Singapore. it's killing their own citizen a chance to participate in Singapore Open.

OVERALL

I am very impressed with the improvement done by the organizer. It's just getting better and better.

How were the line calls generally. I know this is generally an area of contention in every competition.

Live Scores & Results

Yes, this is perhaps the only source of valuable information that can satisfy the needs of badminton fans who can't make it to the venue or who are residing overseas and in different time zones. Many BF'ers have voiced their disappointment at not being able to access live scores of IBF events and some have suggested that the IBF should make it compulsory for organizers to provide this vital info in ENGLISH for the benefit of English-speaking fans. I agree.

For this reason, I'm really grateful and happy that our SBA has consistently made this facility available for most of their tournaments. IBF events are a must and I think our BFers should have on complaint for the Singapore Open.

Local Players' Performance

Singapore is still in the process of building up a strong and reliable team. So it comes as no surprise that our players still come short of world standards, particularly our men in this tournament. Ronald Susilo was unfortunate to meet WR1 Lin Dan at such an early stage in R3. But his recent recovery from injury and his stout battle against Lin that was punctuated with long rallies which prolonged the entire straight games match for 55 min, somehow give hope that Ronald can only do better. Don't forget he beat much higher ranked Wong Choong Hann in R2. However, our young trainees were given the opportunity to experience the demands of such high quality tournaments and this should benefit them in the long run.

So tough is this Singapore Open that like Ronald, other popular names such as Boonsak, Sony, Hafiz, Chong Wei and Chen Yu failed to make the QF.

Our girls fared much better. Of particular mention must be 15-year old Gu Juan who managed to qualify for the Main Draw by eliminating even Wong Mew Choo, Malaysia's No.1 in the WS. But Gu eventually got a free lesson in professional badminton when she was thrashed by Zhou Mi in R1, obtaining only 3 points in both games in 27 min.

Li Li did better taking a game off Zhou Mi in R2, 1-11, 13-11, 4-11 in 60 min. Even WR1 Xie Xingfang lost to Zhou in the QF in straight games! I hope Li Li has now gained more confidence and belief in herself. And last year's US Open Champion, Xing Aiying, surprised us by beating WR2 Zhang Ning in the second game 11-2 before losing the rubber and match in 32 min! Xing can be groomed to become an eventual champion at a higher level. :)

Our reliable XD pair of Saputra & Li was unfortunate to meet England's top pair of Robertson & Emms in R1, but they gave the English a scare before going down 10-15, 15-6, 6-15 in 60 min.

There is hope yet in Singapore Badminton but more time is needed!


Most Memorable Match

The Taufik Hidayat versus Peter Gade QF match should be the match for the finals and indeed for the entire tournament!

It was totally absorbing, tactically intriguing, technically superior, enery sapping, no quarter given, neither was it sought - the men's singles game played to an unbelievable highest level. Such was the tenacity and total concentration of these two world class gladiators that they could only part company after hugging each other emotionally towards the end which came after 95 min on court. I've never watched such beautify badminton like this one for a long time! ;)

The result - Taufik, seeded 8, won 15-13, 17-15 after Gade, seeded 3, allowed him to claw back from a huge deficit during the second game! So Gade himself made the simplest error of not exerting more pressure on the tenacious Taufik to wrap up the second game quickly. :mad:

Other Matches and Personalities of Mention

XD Sudket Prapakamol & Sarelee Thungthon v Robertson & Emms

The Thai Southeast Asia champions, seeded 6, created an upset in the QF by beating Olympic silver medalist Robertson & Emms, seeded 1, in 83 min in a hard-fought 4-15, 15-12, 15-11 but was unfortunate to lose to Olympic gold medalist Zhang Jun & Gao Ling, seeded 2, 15-10, 7-15, 5-15 in the final in 62 min. Certainly a pair to watch.

MD Sigit Budiarto & Candra Wijaya v Boe & Mogensen

The resurrection of Sigit & Candra seems to be on course for they managed to pip the young and talented Danes in the final, 8-15, 15-8, 15-7 in 84 min. Boe & Mogensen were so dominant in the first game that I thought it was all over for their older rivals. But experience showed and now that they have been playing together again for a longer period, Sigit and Candra never gave up and emerged winners in the end. But it is clear that Boe & Mogensen will be the ones to carry Denmark's torch into the future. :)

Zhang Ning

I've watched Zhang many times at the Singapaore Open and she never fails to impress me despite her maturing years! Certainly a good role-model for the young aspirant! Kudos to this Athens Olympic Champion!

Fellow Picture Contributors

I'm so happy to see a lot more postings of SO pics especially from sunshi, storkbill, netasia, ants and others. Thank you guys for your contributions. I can't forget meeting up in SIS with storkbill, who is new to BC, and confirming with him that photography without flash is allowed. He said he had to take time off from his office now and then to try to get into the best position just to take pics for the Forum with his impressive camera. Hopefully, next year will see more enthusiasts taking pics for BC. :)

Some parting pics:

Ronald Susilo, Gu Juan, Li Li, Xing Aiyin, Saputra

Frankly speaking, they are not local talent. They are Indonesia/China born imported players.

:) Ronald Susilo, Gu Juan, Li Li, Xing Aiyin, Saputra

Frankly speaking, they are not local talent. They are Indonesia/China born imported players.

Agree with you they are imported Foreign Talents to help raise the standards of our local badminton talents and so far, they are doing a good job. They have contributed to our success at regional and international levels and help to popularize the game at home. Ronald, Li Li and more recently Aiying, are Singapore citizens now and hopefully they will settle down and raise a family. Then their children will be thoroughbred Singaporeans - just like what most of our own forefathers did! :D

Parents are now more open to their sports talented children taking up sports as a career. The Singapore Sports School is a start but it will take time to nurture and develop a truly professional sports community. Therefore, the short-cuts taken by the SBA and other NSAs as a whole is meant to fill in the gaps to allow time to play a part.

I guess the SBA's strategy is to try to get them when they are young and provide the resources to train them to their highest potential so that they can in turn bring glory to Singapore. Of course, we still need to employ good foreign players to spar with our national squad as one avenue for further improving standards. Singapore is not alone in this game. Other countries less endowed with good local talent are also importing good players and coaches. Even Malaysia, a very strong badminton country, is employing Chinese, Korean and Indonesian coaches to help their players.

If the effort is to help build a strong badminton fraternity, I don't see anything wrong in getting outside help. :)

;) ... i can feel that

it's getting hard to book badminton courts during peak period nowadays. especially during school holiday.

more ppl are attending and aware of Singapore Open.

hopefully, SBA intention is to get badminton to be popular in Singapore and to help their real local talent NOT for a short cut to get a olympic medal.


TICKET PRICE COMPLAIN

Tickets pricing isnt controlled well by the organizer. Early internet booking cost SGD$19 (season ticket). The following week, ppl start selling at SGD$9.00 (season ticket). A week before tournament, ppl start selling at SGD$3.50 (season ticket). I just couldnt believe myself.

;) ... i can feel that

it's getting hard to book badminton courts during peak period nowadays. especially during school holiday.

more ppl are attending and aware of Singapore Open.

hopefully, SBA intention is to get badminton to be popular in Singapore and to help their real local talent NOT for a short cut to get a olympic medal.


TICKET PRICE COMPLAIN

Tickets pricing isnt controlled well by the organizer. Early internet booking cost SGD$19 (season ticket). The following week, ppl start selling at SGD$9.00 (season ticket). A week before tournament, ppl start selling at SGD$3.50 (season ticket). I just couldnt believe myself.

what ?! it's like free:eek:

Live Scores & Results

Yes, this is perhaps the only source of valuable information that can satisfy the needs of badminton fans who can't make it to the venue or who are residing overseas and in different time zones. Many BF'ers have voiced their disappointment at not being able to access live scores of IBF events and some have suggested that the IBF should make it compulsory for organizers to provide this vital info in ENGLISH for the benefit of English-speaking fans. I agree.

For this reason, I'm really grateful and happy that our SBA has consistently made this facility available for most of their tournaments. IBF events are a must and I think our BFers should have on complaint for the Singapore Open.

:
I cant agree more.Live scoring was an important aspect.The Singapore open is aldready over and we are still talking about it.Compare this with the ongoing Malayasian Open ,no live results no pics no wonder everything is quiter as compared to a few days ago!

Nice Pics Loh.Your 2nd pics shows Chetan Anand playing.Did u watch this guy play????What do u think of him???He lost really badly to Gade but played very well and upset Dicky.so what do u make of him???

Nice Pics Loh.Your 2nd pics shows Chetan Anand playing.Did u watch this guy play????What do u think of him???He lost really badly to Gade but played very well and upset Dicky.so what do u make of him???

i watched the match btw PG and Anand, to be fair, it's quite an achievement for him (Anand) to reach the 3rd round. the match wasn't as bad as the score line.. he tried playing his game but no offense, PG is a player of a different class.

nice sum up there loh.. a few more pics to add...

Interesting road sign at the intersection there. "Give." Does that mean yield to the cross traffic or be generous to panhandlers should one be waiting on that corner? :D

i watched the match btw PG and Anand, to be fair, it's quite an achievement for him (Anand) to reach the 3rd round. the match wasn't as bad as the score line.. he tried playing his game but no offense, PG is a player of a different class.
I asked coz i have watch him play and he's pretty deceptive.anyways Gade himself said Anand did well to upset Dicky and that's quite a compliment.He's still a far cry from Gade's level i know but did he try any tricks ??i just wanna know what u make of him??was he nervous??how did he fare??

Did u watch his match against Dicky Palmaya where he upset him??

I asked coz i have watch him play and he's pretty deceptive.anyways Gade himself said Anand did well to upset Dicky and that's quite a compliment.He's still a far cry from Gade's level i know but did he try any tricks ??i just wanna know what u make of him??was he nervous??how did he fare??

Did u watch his match against Dicky Palmaya where he upset him??

i didnt watch his match against Dicky. he started pretty ok, but he couldn't trouble PG and his shots were returned all the time... sorry, didnt follow the whole match as his demised ws kinda expected :D overall, he fared well..

Nice Pics Loh.Your 2nd pics shows Chetan Anand playing.Did u watch this guy play????What do u think of him???He lost really badly to Gade but played very well and upset Dicky.so what do u make of him???

Like Sunzhi, I didn't watch the whole of his matches as there are other matches being played simultaneously. So we fleet from one match to another most of the time.

But I think Chetan must be one, if not the best, of your players. He had to qualify to the main draw by beating two players and beat another two, namely Sasaki of Japan and Dicky Palyama, seeded 15, of Indonesian origin and now playing for the Netherlands. Dicky is a good player to justify that seeding and to be able to beat him, Chetan must be good.

Yes, I have seen Chetan play before. He has improved tremendously and is calm and collected on court. He evokes a sense of self-confidence and his skill is better. I think he must have put in quite a lot of hard work and I wonder who his coach is? Pudukone? For the SO, he is the most successful of all the Indian players and by all accounts, he must be the number one in India now. He can only be better if he continues to put in more training. ;)

BTW, the road sign "GIVE WAY" tells the motorist to give way to traffic on the right as that location is a circle.

Great shots Loh.

Anyway, to improve badminton. Players need to play more competition. The number will show. So thats why it is important to have many tournaments so that both nationals and non nationals can play. Sometimes the locals can learn something from experience players. Its the exposure.

Perhaps a year 24 tournaments for national players will be good exposure to some of the youngsters. They may learn some lessons. Sooner.

There are so many CC in singapore, Wonder why there is no tournament year round. PA or SBA must be sleeping.:D

rgds

I cant agree more.Live scoring was an important aspect.The Singapore open is aldready over and we are still talking about it.Compare this with the ongoing Malayasian Open ,no live results no pics no wonder everything is quiter as compared to a few days ago!

I think we should stop dissing MO now, the event is pretty well organised apart from the fact that there is no live scoring. BAM is handling everything to keep the cost down. For live scoring, they probably need to employ 3rd party companies to do it, which costs a lot.

SBA recently had a lot of money pumped into it, because the GOVT there wants to boost up badminton. Also, considering BAM will be sending 20+ players (excluding coaches/doctors) to US soon, that will cost millions, whereas SBA will only be sending a few. So I think BAM could be running a tight budget right now.

BAM has to get its priorities right, sending players to WC is more important than live scoring at the moment. However, I do hope that live scoring will at least be up next year.

Let the competition be within the tournament, not between tournaments.

Hi DaN_fAn

I just found two more pics of Chetan Anand during his R3 match with Peter Gade:

Hi DaN_fAn

I just found two more pics of Chetan Anand during his R3 match with Peter Gade:
Thanx for your pics and assesment on Chetan Anand lol!
after he beat Dicky i was hoping if maybe he could take atleast a set of Peter,But i guess Peter Gade is not Peter Gade for nothing.he will not allow a new player to throw his weight around him.
Any ways i am happy that Chetan atleast reached till where he did and wish him more success.

:)
If the effort is to help build a strong badminton fraternity, I don't see anything wrong in getting outside help. :)
^Word. :) Great coverage of the tournament by the way :D

Aiyah...what to do..? Short cut mah.... Got plenty of money... shopping for players loh.....cheap cheap....
I guess maybe not much in proactive participation in sports development. Easy way out I guess....Wah.. Imagine Taufik play for singapore....what a waste...:D

After watching the video, I agreed lots of things have improved compare to last year and I hope the upcoming World Championship in US can be as nice as the Singapore Open. The only thing I think could have been improved is the camera position on baseline, the angle was still too steep in my opinion and has been that way for the past 3 years. I can hardly tell what the players were doing until the replay from different cameras.
Just my opinion

Aiyah...what to do..? Short cut mah.... Got plenty of money... shopping for players loh.....cheap cheap....
I guess maybe not much in proactive participation in sports development. Easy way out I guess....Wah.. Imagine Taufik play for singapore....what a waste...:D

When I say short cut, it doesn't necessarily mean what you are suggesting.

Long time ago, we had our very own badminton maestro, the late Wong Peng Soon. But because of the nature of our society then, when the majority of Chinese parents wanted their talented children to study first, play later, sports never took priority.

It was only recently, say last 5 to 10 years, that greater efforts have been placed on the arts and sports by the government and the local National Sports Associations once Singapore has achieved a comfortable level of economic development. To a certain extent, it was found that the arts makes more creative people and sports can help improve productivity in the sense that sports can improve health which then reduces the incidence of illness and sick leave.

The so-called 'short-cut' is to help us reduce the time taken to revive our badminton prowess sparked off so long ago (in the 1950's) by the great Wong and his teammates. Since it will still take some time to convince parents to readily send their sports talented children to the special Sports School (only in its third year of operation (?) compared to other countries in the region like Malaysia and Indonesia) and more time (at leat 4 to 6 years) to develop SS kids, who are admitted when they are about 12 years old, into regional and international athletes. So importing talented children from this part of the world and developing them with our resources is one way to go about it to beef up our numbers.

From time to time, popular names like Taufik, when the opportunity arises, may be engaged to help popularize the badminton game here and they have indeed delivered. And when our players win regional and international competitions, they also help raise the popularity level of badminton to such a frenzy as was the case last year.

Engaging and importing foreign talents come at a price. The price is determined by market conditions. The question of cheapness is relative. If the market price, together with other related living conditions, is not right then foreigners won't come if they have a better choice.

But for Singapore this arrangement has been a "win-win situation". Some of our imported talents are now Singapore citizens. Obviously they must have decided that it is better for them. Indeed, had such foreign talents remain in their home countries, they may not have the opportunities they are now enjoying, comfortable pay, overseas travel, competiting against the best in the world, prize moneys, bonuses, etc.

I suppose once Singapore has built up its own talent pool, there will be less need to import. But I think to a certain extent, Singapore is disadvantaged in this area as it has a small population and there are many competing demands on its talented young. In other words, our badminton talent base will continue to be small and this makes it difficult for us to really shine on the world stage.

This policy of importing foreign talents is not restricted to Singapore. Many European countries which are richer than Singapore are doing so as well. Globalization and the liberalization of such countries as China, where hitherto travel is controlled, make it possible for talented sports people to ply their wares elsewhere. :D

Nothing againsts importing players from strong badminton nations but it will be funny to see the Quarter final of Women's Singles in the future represented by eight different countries but all originated from China :D

Nothing againsts importing players from strong badminton nations but it will be funny to see the Quarter final of Women's Singles in the future represented by eight different countries but all originated from China :D

True, but it will be a sense of achievement for the foreign talent and his/her host country if he/she should beat her 'countryman'. As is normally the case, the foreign talent is considered not good enough to represent his/her own country and is one reason why he/she left in the first place. :)

It is still better than 8 Chinese players representing China and playing in the quarterfinal. Certainly there will not be a fighting spirit.


I still remember what Lindan said after AE2005 final. He told that it does not matter whoever (either Chen Hon or himself) wins in the final. And he gave the reason as China win the Man Single.

He could be right in his own patriotic point of view . But it makes a lot of frustration to fan and sport.

Nothing againsts importing players from strong badminton nations but it will be funny to see the Quarter final of Women's Singles in the future represented by eight different countries but all originated from China :D

Great shots Loh.

Anyway, to improve badminton. Players need to play more competition. The number will show. So thats why it is important to have many tournaments so that both nationals and non nationals can play. Sometimes the locals can learn something from experience players. Its the exposure.

Perhaps a year 24 tournaments for national players will be good exposure to some of the youngsters. They may learn some lessons. Sooner.

There are so many CC in singapore, Wonder why there is no tournament year round. PA or SBA must be sleeping.:D

rgds

I think you are not aware that the Inter-Constituency Tournament has been going on for many, many years and it is competitive and well-supported with a record number of entries this year. Sealman has reminded us in this Forum about this year's competition, which was once again won by Mountbatten. Hitherto there was hardly any publicity and only those directly involved (and there are quite a number) knew of its popularity. If you care to go to the PA website you will find the details of this tournament.

Quite the contrary, the SBA has not been sleeping. It has grown in strength and stature with a Minister in charge and its various programmes have been updated, unpgraded and well-thought out. I have from time to time posted some of the achievements of the SBA, on its ability in organizing numberous well-run tournaments (the just concluded Aviva Open Singapore 2005 is one good example), which have expanded to included not only age-group competitions but also the Masters events (for the senior and veteran players) and Youth Internationals. You could see a calendar of events on the SBA website which included more traditions ones like the National Championships, Satellite, the Singapaore Open, etc.

Apart from this, the SBA has recently been rather successful in getting sponsors. Apart from Yonex, a traditional source of support for badminton related equipment, Cheers and Aviva, together with other companies, have been roped in to finance SBA programmes. Aviva is a new name here and the ability of SBA in luring this very large British insurance company is a feather in its cap. Commitments from companies are normally for a few years.

And more recently the SBA Management has organized a golf tournament which brought in more than a million Singapore dollars to start a Players Endowment Fund, which is meant to assist players financially when they retire from active playing.

You already know something about our foreign-talent scheme. The initiatives from SBA to talent-scout from nearby countries to be trained and represent Singapore have been discussed in these Forum pages at some length. This scheme has brought about satisfactory results and helped raise local standards. Ronald Susilo has already made a name for himself and is now well-assimilated into Singaporean society. He and Li Jiawei will probably marry and set their roots in Singapore. This may be followed by Li Li, who already has a steady.

I'm sure there are more in the pipeline as the SBA is serious in its goal of putting Singapore in the World Badminton Map. :)

So are we fair in saying SBA is sleeping? :rolleyes: