Ordinary Season Pass is good enough for me besides I am bringing my trusty Bushnell pocket bino with me
To ALL OUR DEAR FRIENDS from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Australia and overseas, especially one Rudy from US, we welcome you to the Aviva Open Singapore this June. And it seems China's best players, who were absent last year to prepare for the Beijing Olympics will not miss this Singapore Open. And if Lin Dan comes to challenge LCW et all, it will be a spectacle not to be missed! Unfortunately, Aviva has still not decided whether to continue to sponsor this SS tournament for next year...
Taken from Today paper 1 May 2009, Sports Section 'Singapore Sports', Page 24 by Low Lin Fhoong First Asia, then the world. China's Li Ning Group plan to take badminton world by storm, one step at a time. FEW will forget the sight of Li Ning "walking on air" at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Suspended by wires, the 1984 Olympic triple gold medallist lit the cauldron at the Bird's Nest Stadium to open the world's biggest multi-sports event. Today, the man voted one of China's greatest athletes of the 20th century is chairman of the Li Ning Group, one of the leading sports brand enterprises in the country. The company hope to go international, starting with South-east Asia, and Singapore. They have already made their first move. For a start, Li Ning Sports Singapore have located their first regional office here and are now the equipment sponsors for the Aviva Open Singapore 2009, a badminton tournament that is part of the Super Series calendar. The official launch of the tournament was held yesterday, and speaking at the event, Li Ning Sports Singapore's South-east Asia general manager, Vivien Lim, said: "In China, badminton is the No 3 most popular sport, and in Singapore, it's No 5. There's a big opportunity to grow the business and go out of China, and Singapore offers the stability and infrastructure in the region. "We are also looking at a title sponsorship of $8 to $9 million for a three to four year deal for the Singapore Open, and are currently in discussions. Our focus is on badminton, and we are also sponsors for the Asian Satellite and Youth International this year." Li Ning's one-year deal with the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) is estimated at between $100,000 to $200,000. Aviva's contract for title sponsorship of the tournament ends this year and Li Ning are keen to take over. The Li Ning Group in China have over 6,000 directly-managed and franchise retail stores. The group revenue last year was 6.69 billion yuan ($1.45 billion), a 53.8-per-cent jump from 2007. The Beijing-based company's expansion plan will focus on the group's licensing, distribution and franchising business. Li Ning are eyeing a retail store here and in Malaysia this year. "South-east Asia is the right place to expand the business, and in five years' time, we want to expand to Europe and the United States," said Lim. "The forecast is to become one of the top five world sports brand by 2018." TODAY understands that Li Ning are also in discussions with the Singapore Table Tennis Association to sponsor the national team's attire and equipment next year. Paddlers like Li Jiawei and Feng Tianwei would join the company's stable of stars, which includes Olympic and world pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva, and the NBA's Shaquille O'Neal and Baron Davis. Part of the Badminton World Federation's 12-leg Super Series tournament, the Aviva Open Singapore 2009 will be held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium from June 9 to 14.
I've never believed in Premium tickets. They are, for the most case, too close to the courts and don't have sufficient elevation.
Good one, Oldhand ...... No doubt you are partially right, on your age and white mouse vision part ...... I found that for the purpose of watching badminton, elevation is much more important than a hawk's eyes. Easier to spot "enhanced" line-judging and great shot angles not seen from an almost level position.
Extract from an article in the sports section of 1st May Straits Times: In the run-up to the event, organisers will attempt to set a Guinness world record for the most number of people taking part in a badminton rally. Members of the public will be invited to visit various sports complexes islandwide on May 16 for try-outs. The record-setting event will be held at Raffles City on May 23.
I suppose we have to leave Bro Din alone if we want speedy up-to-date reports. I just hope our Englishman commentator will not deny him that freedom and independence. Otherwise, maybe Rudy will be the best man to go between.
please feedback Hey Loh, can you feedback to the TV crew that the camera angle it way too high? I think among all the Super Series, Singapore Open has the worst camera angle? Why not take a close look on All England, China Master/Open and Danish Open/Copenhagen Masters, these tournaments have excellent camera positions. Thanks Loh!
Hey friend, tough call man. I'm sure they must have received some feedback if viewers are really dissatisfied. So far did not get violent objections, I suppose, otherwise we should see some changes like what you have observed. As they say, one man's meat may be another man's poison. Difficult to satisfy everybody lah!
Put a big banner there and they'll change man. I hope the big guns will come. All bought tickets already? VIP tickets anyone?
