[Hong Kong] Regular Sessions / Club / Tournaments

Discussion in 'China / Hong Kong' started by Vince_696, Mar 31, 2024.

  1. Vince_696

    Vince_696 New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2023
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Switzerland
    Hey guys,

    Hopefully I can get an answer here as I'm a bit lost:
    I lived in HK back in 2018 / 2019. At that time, I could go to Meetup and find Intermediate groups to play with like 3 or 4 times a weekend. I've moved recently back to HK, and I'm seeing that most of these groups are now gone (not really surprising I guess). Yet what I don't understand is, who books all these courts if there are so few groups available on meetup ? Does another system prevail when finding groups to play with ?

    So yeah I'm basically looking for an > INT group.. happy to play several times during weekends.

    Also - does anyone know how competitive tournaments work in HK ? Like if I want to go to an (amateur) tournament - how does that work ? Can I register easily ? Is there a national federation I need to subscribe to that organizes tournaments regularly etc ? Can you play as a non cantonese speaking person ?

    Cheers,
    Vince
     
  2. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

    Joined:
    Apr 25, 2002
    Messages:
    23,868
    Likes Received:
    4,825
    Occupation:
    wannabe badminton phototaker
    Location:
    Outside the box
    Tournaments in HK.

    1. entry for HK annual championships is now open. This is the main local tournament of the year. You have to be registered with the HK Badminton Association to enter and no, language skills are not requisite for entering :). An English person and an Indian person have won the age group categories in the past. Closing date will be in about a week. It would help if you know someone who can help read the Chinese version website as there is a lot more information written in Chinese compared to English.

    2. each district in HK organises a tournament once a year based on age group. Entries should be coming out soon as these tournaments run from around July to November. Need to go to the LCSD website. Entry is electronic and it’s a pain to find the right webpage for entry (English). For these, there’s a limit on spaces so if there are more entries than spaces, there is a ballot system. If you’re successful, you get a letter asking you to go to a sports centre and pay the entry fee. Tournaments dates can clash but because of ballot system, people tend to enter more tournaments and then see which one they get into the draw successfully.

    3. From November to April, there are various league matches. Entry for teams is not as formal as perhaps it is in Europe as in HK, there is no formal need to register a team with the badminton association. A group of people just get together , choose a name for a team and then enter the league. After that, they hope the team will be picked for through the ballot process.

    4. People also travel out of HK for tournaments and friendly matches as HK has its limitations for tournaments. Shenzhen is common in the weekends and people combine going there for badminton and eating and a cheap haircut/massage. Lots of players have travelled to Taiwan this weekend for the Morning Cup tournament (it’s huge).
     
    #2 Cheung, Mar 31, 2024
    Last edited: Mar 31, 2024
  3. Vince_696

    Vince_696 New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 19, 2023
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Switzerland
    Wow that is an extensive answer ... thanks a lot for that mate, much appreciated :-D :-D


     

Share This Page