.. Mason Takes Reins of BWF Athletes’ Commission Thursday, March 21, 2013 - Text by Gayle Alleyne | Badmintonphoto http://www.bwfbadminton.org/news_item.aspx?id=71955 Excerpts: Emma Mason is the new Chair of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Athletes’ Commission. The now-retired Scottish international was recently selected by fellow Commission members to lead the players’ organisation and she is therefore the first member of what will be the new BWF Council... ...The 26-year-old, who was previously Vice Chair of the Commission, will now have newly-elected Commission member, Hans-Kristian Vittinghus of Denmark (right), as her deputy. ...In her new duties as Chair, Mason will be a full voting member of the BWF Council and has the responsibility to advise Council on matters relevant to athletes. In a recent interview on her contribution and commitment to the Athletes’ Commission, she gave an insight into the organisation’s role. “We help players, who are our friends and colleagues, ensuring that the athletes’ voices are heard. We hope to aid players by providing a pathway for them to communicate their issues and aim to improve the sport for them where possible,” she explained. Mason, who is halfway through her four-year term on the Commission, will serve two years as Chair until her term ends in 2015.
Tan, Polii and Vittinghus Elected by Peers Sunday, March 10, 2013 http://www.bwfbadminton.org/news_item.aspx?id=71526 Excerpt: Yuhan Tan (Belgium), Greysia Polii (Indonesia) and Hans-Kristian Vittinghus (Denmark) are the new members of the BWF Athletes’ Commission. The three were elected to serve four-year terms following four days of voting by their fellow players; two at the Yonex German Open and two at the Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships.
Malaysia’s Nadzmi pulls out of race for BWF hotseat By RAJES PAUL http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2013/3/25/sports/12884439&sec=sports Monday March 25, 2013 Excerpts: KUALA LUMPUR: In the spirit of Asian solidarity, Datuk Nadzmi Mohd Salleh (pic) has withdrawn from standing for the Badminton World Federation (BWF)’s president post. The 59-year-old Nadzmi, who is the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president, made this announcement yesterday after receiving a surprise visit from his challenger Justian Suhandinata of Indonesia at his residence. The decision also comes a day after Nadzmi accepted his appointment as the Badminton Asian Confederation (BAC) acting president. ...“It was a surprise to receive a visit from Justian. He came to congratulate me for my appointment as the BAC’s acting president,” said Nadzmi. “He also wanted to know my stand about the BWF’s election as he wanted to start his campaigning. “I had been contemplating about this matter (about the BWF’s election) and after Justian’s visit, I decided to withdraw. It is the best decision. Nadzmi’s decision was also supported by the fact that running the BAC would be a challenging task. “The situations is not in order in the BAC and it will require me to do a lot of work. We have to look into the welfare, unity and solidarity among Asian countries. For now, it is best that I focus on this responsibility,” he said.
New BWF Council Elected For 2013-2017 Saturday, May 18, 2013 - Text by Gayle Alleyne | Edwin Leung http://www.bwfbadminton.org/news_item.aspx?id=73919 Excerpt: The full BWF Council is as follows:President – Poul-Erik Hoyer (Denmark) *Deputy President – Gustavo Salazar Delgado (Peru) * Please note the new BWF President’s name is officially Poul-Erik Hoyer (right; BWF home page being congratulated by his predecessor, Dr. Kang Young Joong). Continental Confederation Vice Presidents Africa – Dagmawit Berhane Asia – Liu Fengyan Europe – Gregory Verpoorten Oceania – Geraldine Brown Pan America – Vishnu Tolan Paul Kurzo – Vice President Para-Badminton Emma Mason – Chair of BWF Athletes’ Commission The 17 persons below were elected by the BWF membership today. They are listed by name, country and number of votes polled (highest total first). Akhilesh Das Gupta – India – 259 Etienne Thobois – France – 255Sergey Shakhray – Russia – 254 Li Ling Wei - China – 253 Mehdi Karbasian – Iran – 244 Lim Teong Kiat – Malaysia – 233 David Cabello – Spain – 171 Peter Tarcala – Slovakia – 168 Raj Gaya – Mauritius – 168 Jassem Kanso – Lebanon – 166 Nigel Skelt – New Zealand – 164 Nora Perry – England – 164 Ranjit De Silva – Sri Lanka – 164 Chipo Zumburani – Zimbabwe – 162 Lawrence Chew – Switzerland – 162 Wayne Somers – Canada – 157 Ng Yoke Weng – Singapore – 156
Women Gain Record Six Seats on BWF Council Tuesday, May 21, 2013 - Text by Gayle Alleyne | Edwin Leung http://www.bwfbadminton.org/news_item.aspx?id=73987 Excerpts: ...This milestone equates to 23 per cent of the 26-seat Council being comprised of women, surpassing the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommendation of at least 20 per cent representation by women on sports decision-making organisations. It also increases by four the number of women on the BWF Council – up from two over the last four years. The impressive line-up includes two IOC members, two world champions, two vice presidents of badminton continental confederations and the Chair of the BWF Athletes’ Commission. There are also two women from Africa, again underlining the growing interest in and stature of badminton on that continent. The women Council members are (alphabetically; country): Dagmawit Girmay Berhane (Ethiopia; Vice President of Africa Confederation); Geraldine Brown (Australia; Vice President of Oceania Confederation); Li Lingwei (China), Emma Mason (Scotland; Athletes’ Commission Chair), Nora Perry (England) and Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe). The two continental vice-presidents as well as Mason automatically became BWF Council members before Saturday’s elections, by virtue of heading their respective organisations. Li, Perry and Zumburani were elected by delegates attending the BWF Council’s 74th Annual General Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
-Of indirect interest in this thread.... Badminton Europe President Poul-Erik Hoyer resigns Europe, June 16 2013 http://www.mail.com/int/news/europe/2155060-badminton-europe-president-poul-erik-hoyer-resigns.html COPENHAGEN (AP) — The president of the Badminton Europe Confederation resigned Sunday and will step down with immediate effect. Poul-Erik Hoyer of Denmark had been in charge of European badminton's governing body since August 2010, but has chosen to focus on his new role heading the Badminton World Federation, to which he was appointed in May. BEC Vice President Joao Matos of Portugal will take over from Hoyer until the next Annual Delegates' Meeting in April 2014.