For a country with a population of about 6 million, I must say that Denmark's achievements in badminton is remarkable. And I think other developing badminton nations should emulate Denmark. Even traditional badminton nations such as Malaysia can learn a thing or two from the Danes. It is not about how much money a government is willing to invest yearly for the development of the game. It is about how professional the association/sporting body is managed. I am also amazed how shuttlers like ML/JE, PG or KJ can still play top level badminton in their 30s.
The Danish set up i believe have their own problems... Some which are beyond their badminton comunity's control and the second.... a 'problem' caused by their set up itself. As you might have noticed........ there are no new faces coming through the cracks. Kaldau is no where to be seen, the same can be said about Mathias Boe and Morgensan... Joachim is raised from Germany badminton environment so doesn't count.... perhaps there is some hope in young Jan Jorgensen. The main problem is obviously economics which are beyond their badminton set up's control. Higher income levels for the working class compounded with (general) higher cost of living makes potential badminton athletes think twice about such a risky career move. Especially when the returns from professional badminton are comparatively low. (higher oppourtunity cost bla bla bla....... can't believe i left this out the first time) It's not easy being a full time pro badminton player when all your peers are either moving up the corporate ladder or even saved up for a full years leisure vacation. The second problem I have come to understand is their own running club competitions (and surrounding europe club leagues)... although it is logical to say that having club competitions promote a higher level of badminton.... These events have grown to a point that the $$ and time involves subsitutes and even clashes with international events. I've heard that quite some players compete in these leagues at various club levels to earn extra do$h, enjoy the sport they love......... but don't quite have any aspiration for World Badminton. You may even notice that it is even quite rare for foreign talent from China and Indonesia to make any further career headway after venturing to these clubs as imported players. jug8man
Yes… why? Is it because they got better pay in this euro tournament than representing their country. Or because they can win more as the standard there are lower?
The pay should be attractive enough for them to come. Most of them who join the clubs are not yet top national team member. So they don't get sent by the country to represent. They don't really make new big results in world badminton cause sometimes they may be too busy playing in the club leagues to participate in many world badminton events and performing other duties for their new club.
In my opinion, the chinese should be the model for badminton. Through the years, decades, China has all along been the top3 nations in badminton. Their spirit and support from the country is what i feel, non-existent in any other countries. But well, badminton is China's pride, which i think they will still be at the top, for the many years to come.
I agree they have their own problems and all. But we must acknowledge that despite their limited resources, the Danes have produced a few world class shuttlers. I am not sure or convinced about the financial/economical aspect though. Yes, I agree badminton offers the least prize money. But even if one decide to opt for a more glamorous sport like football, the odds of one making it are pretty slim actually. For one David Beckham, I am pretty sure there are thousands who failed. I believe shuttlers like PG, KJ. JE/ML are motivated beyond financial gains.
I believe that they are not motivated by money in their youth but after more than 20years of badminton, they found that badminton is the only things they know how do and the only jobs the can do that can earn them a living .
By looking at Morten Frost, it is not bad of living. Dont you agree?? But then again, in any sports, the success rate is pretty low for one making the grade. For example, football may offer the largest salaries i.e. 100,000pounds/week, large signing fees, etc etc but how many can be a John Terry, Steven Gerard or Lionel Messi?? Back to Danish badminton, I think given their limited resources what they have achieved and produced have been remarkable.
That is a silly statement, imhop.. Most top athletes are highly attractive in the business.. They have "winner-heads" and could in many cases earn more in the private business, than from their professional career here.. But for most top athletes here in the nordic areas the winning and glory are the foremost driving factors.. /Twobeer
I'm really curious about the Danish model too. W/ just 6M people there must be something very effective about it. I don't know too much about the set up, but can someone elaborate on: 1- what is the model (grass roots --> high amateur --> pro, funding levels and programs) 2- strengths (recruitment, individual vs team focus, training, development, organization...) 3- weaknesses (economics, political, ....) It would be a good start to understanding why it works and maybe what could be imported by other nations to raise the overall level of the sport. Derek
Agree, players play for the sake of playing, or winning, or glory. Money really is just a bonus for some of these players.
