tutu_h
03-06-2007, 04:54 AM
http://www.badmintonengland.co.uk/show_news.asp?section=0001000100110022&id=1039&monthinview=2007/03/1
Taufik out of Yonex All England Championships
OLYMPIC champion Taufik Hidayat has withdrawn from the Yonex All England Open Championships at Birmingham's National Indoor Arena.
His absence was confirmed at the tournament's Team Managers' Meeting when Indonesian Badminton Association officials revealed that the 25-year-old 2005 world champion and 2006 Asian Games winner had not travelled to Birmingham.
Later one of the team officials said thay Taufik had withdrawn "because he was not physically prepared."
Taufik, 1999 and 2000 runner-up, had insisted the All England was his target this year but he has not played in Birmingham since reaching the 2004 semi-finals, In 2005 he was injured and in 2006 he was absent because of his wedding.
On top of that this year he has only played the Malaysian Open, the first event in the Badminton World Federation's new Super Series. The All England is the third event on the 12-tournament circuit.
He had been drawn to face 2003 All England champion Muhammad Hafiz Hashim of Malaysia in Wednesday's first round with the prospect of meeting world and All England champion Lin Dan in the quarter-finals.
Despite his absence tournament director Darren Parks said: "We have a lot of great players competing this week and the semi-finals (Saturday) and the finals (Sunday) are virtual sellouts. Cina's Gao Ling is bidding for a seventh consecutive women's doubles tittle with Huang Sui.
"They have won the first two Super Series events in Malaysia and Korea and Gao has also won both mixed with Zheng Bo. They also won the German Open at the weekend."
England's Tracey Hallam, the Commonwealth champion, starts her comeback Tuesday following ankle surgery in September. She must tackle the qualifying rounds commencing 12 noon.
Taufik out of Yonex All England Championships
OLYMPIC champion Taufik Hidayat has withdrawn from the Yonex All England Open Championships at Birmingham's National Indoor Arena.
His absence was confirmed at the tournament's Team Managers' Meeting when Indonesian Badminton Association officials revealed that the 25-year-old 2005 world champion and 2006 Asian Games winner had not travelled to Birmingham.
Later one of the team officials said thay Taufik had withdrawn "because he was not physically prepared."
Taufik, 1999 and 2000 runner-up, had insisted the All England was his target this year but he has not played in Birmingham since reaching the 2004 semi-finals, In 2005 he was injured and in 2006 he was absent because of his wedding.
On top of that this year he has only played the Malaysian Open, the first event in the Badminton World Federation's new Super Series. The All England is the third event on the 12-tournament circuit.
He had been drawn to face 2003 All England champion Muhammad Hafiz Hashim of Malaysia in Wednesday's first round with the prospect of meeting world and All England champion Lin Dan in the quarter-finals.
Despite his absence tournament director Darren Parks said: "We have a lot of great players competing this week and the semi-finals (Saturday) and the finals (Sunday) are virtual sellouts. Cina's Gao Ling is bidding for a seventh consecutive women's doubles tittle with Huang Sui.
"They have won the first two Super Series events in Malaysia and Korea and Gao has also won both mixed with Zheng Bo. They also won the German Open at the weekend."
England's Tracey Hallam, the Commonwealth champion, starts her comeback Tuesday following ankle surgery in September. She must tackle the qualifying rounds commencing 12 noon.