It has been reported that Singapore may withdraw from Sudirman Cup due to swine flu. Singapore government has pledged all of it athletes from traveling abroad. Singapore team had withdrawn from Walikota ( Indonesia) next week. ( source: badzine)
SIN's coaches said they are not so sure....they are supposed to leave in these 3 days ...also SIN has paid at least 50% of hotel which are not refundable...I hope they go...most team will arrive on May 5 or 6... Japanese team had trained in HKG for 2 weeks before going to Guangzhou. INA team will arrive on May 6.
I hope this is not true because if it is true I can't watch Singapore wearing Li-Ning to play in the Sudirman Cup And China has arrived in Guangzhou yesterday night
Swine flu? Singapore doesn't have a team strong enough to battle at the Sudirman Cup. The stalwarts are semi-retired and the new crop is far from battle-ready. The 'swine-flu' excuse might save Singapore a lot of embarrassment
What about Promotion to Div 1? Not motivation enough? The Div 2 lineup is pretty even and quite a number of teams have similar chances.
Am not sure whether the decision to witdraw is a good one but i guess it is better to be safe than sorry.
But hotel booking already paid 50% leh, not refundable, waste money if dont go . Other countries going, including the careful Japanese. If Spore dont go, it'll only reinforce certain conceptions abt the management.
Spoke and played with our first single. We stand a good chance..... thailand is one of the strongest opponent........
I agree with both Oldhand and you that Team SIN will have no chance at all, judging by their recent performances, so better remain at home and train harder as a team instead of sending maybe some undeserving players for a holiday. If going there and contracting the swine flu somehow to infect others at home, it will be even worse.
I hope the swine flu will not impact that much on the attendance for this tournament. There are more swine flu cases in US than in China and yet fan are attending the NBA, MLB and NHL in record numbers. As long as precautions are taken then should be a smooth event.
Agree. i think they should just Go! Unless the cases in China are really bad and alarming. But hey, Singapore is very particular, i am not surprised.
Is there any swine flu cases reported in China??? I can understand if the event is held at Mexico, but China is an ocean away.... cough cough...
This swine flu appears to be the worst of its kind as it is easily transferred from man to man and from man to animals. Just a cough or perhaps a sneeze from an infected person, not even a physical contact, can catch many others around him off guard and succumb if their immunity system is weak. It was reported that this so-called 'swine' flu did not come from the pigs but from man himself who infected the swines instead. In a very high density and small country like Singapore, infections can spread like wild fire if the proper precautions are not taken. Already the authorities here are isolating those who have been to Mexico and they will remain in quarantine for observation and tests. Singapore can ill afford not to step up measures to prevent any outbreak especially when the Aviva Singapore Open and the Youth Asian Games are just around the corner in June.
_______________________________________________________________ The New Straits Times, 4 May 2009 , Page 39, reported the concern of the BAM on the Influenza A (H1N1) virus which could affect the 2009 Sudirman Cup tournament: “ MALAYSIA'S biggest hurdle in winning a medal in the Sudirman Cup may not be in the form of any of their opponents but could instead be the threat from the Influenza A (H1N1) virus which could force the mixed team event to be postponed. The Sudirman Cup is scheduled to be held in Guangzhou, a close neighbour of Hong Kong where the virus has spread, on May 10-17 and the BA of Malaysia (BAM) is in contact with the Badminton World Federation (BWF) on the status of the event. There is cause for concern as Malaysia are in Group A with Denmark, South Korea and Hong Kong and the World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed that all three countries have been affected by the virus. BAM general manager Kenny Goh said they are concerned about the safety of the national shuttlers and will act based on the advice of BWF and also hosts China. "We are aware of the situation and have been in touch with BWF. So far no restrictions have been announced but we will keep monitoring the situation as we don't want our shuttlers to be at risk," said Kenny yesterday. Datuk Dr Ramlan Aziz, the National Sports Institute (NSI) director-general, said he has spoken to Kenny about the outbreak and has been advised on the matter. "WHO has reported that the virus outbreak is at phase 5 and as far as possible, it is better not to travel overseas," said Dr Ramlan. "However, there is still no travel restrictions. It's the responsibility of BAM to consult with BWF and hosts China to ensure it is safe to compete in the Sudirman Cup". "I understand that BAM will be consulting on the matter with BWF tomorrow (today) and we also wish that the hosts will give a genuine feedback on the matter," he added. "The safety of our players should be of paramount importance but if there is a collective decision to carry on with the Sudirman Cup we have taken precautions. "We will be providing all the players and officials an information pack which will outline the precautionary measures the players must take. We will also send our medical officers with the team." BWF has also been monitoring the situation and an official announcement is expected to be made soon. A postponement of the event has not been ruled out as the virus has been spreading fast in Asia as well. The Malaysian players are due to leave for Guangzhou on Thursday.” It is hoped that the situation will not worsen to warrant a postponement of the tournament. ________________________________________________________________
Is it better to waste 50% or 100% though? competition wise it is worth going IMO even if their performance have been poor lately. They have to turn around sometime right? Especially as this is a biennial big tournament not just a lower grade tournament.
Pay 50% never go at all more wasting than pay 100% & go & fight. At least got see & experience something, esp for the 1st timers. If really a waste, why long, long time ago the particular country/countries want to participate in Surdirman Cup in the 1st place? - they already know they wouldnt win since most are not in Division 1.
