i assume most tournies during earlier rounds, should have a lot of empty seats. I assume you can simply move to the court you want to, and enjoy the game you really want to watch.
Yes it happens in most parts of Asia. Spectators have the luxury to choose to watch their favourite players in action during the earlier rounds when plentiful empty seats are available. They would rush from court to court and jostle for the best seats. But not during the SF and F when most choice seats have been 'reserved' and taken up.
BUTminton As i had said before, IOC wouldnt dare to dump badminton after 2012 because it would piss of china. China wouldnt built this amazing facility if they know IOC would drop badminton event. NFW. ------------------------------------------------ 10:49, October 15, 2007 Gunalan: China makes badminton more popular Punch Gunalan, first vice-president of Badminton World Federation (BWF), has given high marks to an Olympic badminton test event and praised China for making badminton a more popular sport. The International Badminton Tournament, held from Oct. 10 to 14at Beijing University of Technology (BUT) Gymnasium, was among a series of test events for Beijing 2008 Olympics and the BUT Gymnasium will serve as the badminton and rhythmic gymnastics venue for the Beijing Olympics next year. As a BWF official, Gunalan has shuttled between Olympic badminton venues since badminton was admitted to the Olympics in 1992. "It's nearly perfect and the best venue I have ever seen, all the venues for the previous Olympics were temporarily renovated and had problems more or less, but this venue was specially designed according to the characteristics of badminton," Gunalan spoke highly of the BUT Gymnasium. Also, Gunalan sang high praise for the organization of this tournament. "I inspected the venue three weeks before the opening of the Athens Olympics, but it was not fully ready. However, this venue in Beijing has been used one year before the opening of the Olympics and it's really the first time," he said. Gunalan stressed that the badminton's steady position in the Olympics was attributed to the efforts made by China. "Our thanks go to China, which has helped badminton become a more popular sport. Now the Badminton Training Center has been established in Guangzhou (in South China) and we hope Beijing can have one too in the future," he said. Though it is said that the badminton might be excluded from the2016 Olympics, Gunalan firmly refuted this rumor. "Badminton will be in the 2012 London Olympics for sure and it will be the same in the 2016 Olympics," he said. "We don't need to worry about it as the badminton is one of the top 12 sports in the world. At least, we have never heard this information from the International Olympic Committee and they have never put it onto the agenda." As the Beijing tournament wasn't an Olympic qualifying event, many overseas players opted out at the last minute, leaving NguyenTien Minh from Vietnam the only non-Chinese on the court. "It will not affect the test purpose of the tournament," Gunalan said. Source: Xinhua
Classic "Chicken or the Egg First" Scenario I have always thought that the lack of a massive base interest is the primary reason why badminton does not get enough mileage, and this further leads to major sports giant manufacturers (Nike, Adidas, etc) to relegate the sports under the general classification of "Indoor Sports." I was surprised to hear that it is the second most widely played sports in the world; Despite that, not even one major giant sports manufacturer have taken it seriously enough to actually produce a clothing line labelled as "badminton clothing, or badminton gear." No one is taking up the challenge to get a market share from Yonex. If the situation continues, it will be very difficult to expect Yonex to do more than its current advertising activities to promote badminton, as it is not threatened from its position in any other way As badminton is predominantly popular in Asia, where the brand of consumer trends are more on mass production, and "following leads" instead of innovation, it may be difficult to depend on critical mass alone to promote badminton. Niche marketing may be the key. The only lacking ingredient is a general recognition of the sport in a country like the US. As the major sports giant companies are based here, and most trends, styles and advertising concepts that are filtered worldwide has its roots from this country, it is very critical that all initiatives in improving the sports' popularity will originate from here
Badminton makes 'Head'way By Earl D.C. Bracamonte, Contributor 10/26/2007 Sports and its underlying technology, like the worldwide Web, has progressed by leaps and bounds. What may have been relegated as a “street game” in the past two decades has now become a sport all its own and something to be reckoned with. Such is the case of badminton. Head, the global leader in outdoor sports, has taken the cue and took the indoor arena by storm with the introduction of its complete, specially-designed line of badminton products and accessories. The outdoor sports giant in the events of racquetball, tennis and squash held its simultaneous global launch very recently. In Manila, the celebrated sports label highlighted a demo game of the Philippine Badminton Association – Junior Group at the indoor court of Club Filipino in Greenhills, San Juan. Attendees of the event were also privileged to register for free badminton cards. The discount card will be honored in participating bars, restaurants, badminton courts and sporting goods stores nationwide. “Head is one of the top brands in racquet sports across the globe, and we’re confident we can compete at the highest levels in the sport of badminton,” said Joanne Ng-Palomar, marketing manager of Dynamic Sports Corp. “Head is manufactured using the newest Metallix technology that makes each racket superior than all the rest.” The Head Metallix series is the most powerful and high-performance badminton racket in the market to date. No chain is strong enough to harness the power of a Head Metallix racket. Made from a crystal matrix of carbon fibers, Metallix is one of the lightest and strongest new materials today, resulting in a weightless, sturdier and more powerful racket than ever before. Badminton, as a sport, has shown a multitude of following from both professional players and enthusiasts alike — a testament to its renaissance as a well-loved sport. This is bolstered further by the increasing number of badminton courts and clubs that have virtually sprouted all over the metropolis and across the entire Philippine archipelago. As part of its global campaign, Head also secured a worldwide television exposure through the international tournaments in Denmark: the Denmark Open and Copenhagen Masters. The Denmark Open is the biggest badminton tournament in Europe in prize money and that will soon be part of the new international super series being introduced by the International Badminton Federation since January this year. Partnership with the Danish Badminton Association, as well as the signing up of professional players to be its endorsers marked Head’s Scandinavian launch. Moreover, Head has signed up three of the sport’s premier players for multi-year product representation: Olympic badminton medalist Zhou Mi and the world’s top fourth pair in the doubles division Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen. The Danish duo will endorse Head globally until 2008. A complete line of Head rackets, bags and accessories are available at all Chris Sports outlets, badminton hubs and selected top sports retailers nationwide. For more product information, simply log on to www.head.com. In the words of celebrated athlete Marco Büchel, “Sports is a universal language. And Head is the first word.”
Totally agree, but as for my highschool in Toronto, badminton seems to be the dominate sport. If i remember correctly The team never lost a single time to anyone
If people ask why there aren't many big corporations sponsoring badminton events... here is the real reason... $$$ Let's see here... big corporations which sponsor big $$$ sports are the likes: beer companies, car companies(BMW, Benz), financial companies, Rolex, phone companies, fast food chains, and etc. Why don't they sponsor badminton events??? The answer is simple... since badminton is more popular in Asia countries, and only a few countries actually generate a decent crowd for events(Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore(maybe), and China). Now, look at the economic status of these countries, and the standard of living as well... and you'll see why companies like BMW, Benz, and Rolex much rather invest their money into tennis than badminton. Example, how many people in those Asian countries listed above can find extra money to purchase things like expensive cars, and watches when these things are not a "need", but just a nice thing to have??? Then I don't think badminton mixed as well with beer drinking compare to an American football game, so beer companies aren't interested in investing in badminton + the fact that North American drink more beer(not the Chinese types) than Asian. Also, North American eat a lot more fast food compare to Asian, so fast food chain see "North American" sport as a better investment compare to "Asian" sport, which means you can then rule out the possibility of McDonalds or KFC sponsoring badminton events. That leave badminton with only financial companies, which is why we see Aviva or the CICC(well, the China insurance company...can't remember its name) to sponsor badminton events, mainly because they know everyone needs financial products. Probably most of us know that unless something drastic is done to promote badminton to North America(particularly the U.S), or else badminton won't attract the big $$$... simply because North American are famous for spending money, and getting into debt... It is true though.
r u saying badminotn people are more health conscious? Yes, it's true If bmw, rolex, benz don't see chinese people as a viable market, then they are just slow and so blur. Look at any big international bank, insurance, real estate/development companies, they all have an asian division. Some even have a division just for china. Excerpt #1" The number of the billionaires in China ranking the second place in the world! According to a source, the number of billionaires in China ranks the second place in the world, following US. In 2007, the number of the billionaires has reached 108 from 15 in last year. About 800 have been engaged in Hurun's China Rich List this year. " Excerpt #2 "And, guess what? Rolls-Royce's sales are up 50% this year, about double the pace of China's overall luxury segment. China is now Roll-Royce's third biggest market after the U.S. and Britain, and the company's fastest growing one. A big reason is the rapid wealth accumulation in rich coastal markets such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, where newly rich businessmen are buying Phantoms loaded with expensive extras to get around town in style. " Generally, bmw, lexus and alike are targeing a narrow range of audience.
Extreme suggestion Called it sacrilege to national sports identity. Let's just focus on North America, since I have been living there before. Supposed in the interval of Superbowl in the US, ESPN or FOX broadcast a demo game with top players like Lin Dan between Peter Gade etc or the fast and furious doubles game...and let's say Yonex paid a fortune to the networks to put it on Superbowl commercial...I would predict interest in Badminton will soar. And if Hollywood do a badminton movie starring the latest starlets or actors...etc.....some movie called 'feathers of glory', staring Scarlet Johansson as Camilla Martin etc....with drama...love triangle.....suspense.....great camera angle....slow motion shots like in 'the Matrix' . Same here in Canada with Hockey night in Canada, with the endorsement of Don Cherry. Let's say the top snipers in NHL plays competitive badminton to improve their hand-eye coordination during training. Or Enforcers/pugilist like Boogard/May/Parker etc...suddenly have soft hands and pump in 30-50 goals per season....Their sudden sharpshooting skills directly derived from badminton training. Or Hockey players use Yonex equipments. In short Badminton needs prime time exposure. Cheers
I completely agree. If the goal is to really elevate badminton in the league of sports like tennis, it needs to be pushed. Its complete packaging and image should be re studied to gain a more universal appeal that is not exclusively asian, specially from the North American standpoint. It may be easier said than done, and it will take tremendous amount of funds, but waiting for badminton's own merits to take its natural course may just take too long.
I recently took the future mother-in-law to a badminton match and she never enjoyed badminton. However as we have changed to the rally point scoring system she really got into the game and enjoyed it. I personnally think that with the old scoring (in terms of watching) a game/match coud take a long time to draw a conclusion and therefore the watcher would lose interest and now with the new scoing it is easier to get involved and a more gripping experience. Also more coverage of badminton on television will get people interested. Not sure if you have already mentioned this.
it's good to know that this feedback came from an non-badminton fan. Disregarding the tactical aspect of the game, personally i like the NSS because it is easier to track score and when or who to serve. Tracking one serve at a time is easier than tracking 2 service under OSS.
I'm just going to say what I think is a very large factor to breaking into the NA market: badminton needs more English-speaking Europeans or just more Americans participating, and I hate to say it, but, more attractive players. Athletes like Beckham, Brady, Sharapova, Snow, etc. all pique peoples' interests and lure them into watching. Every sport has die hard fans like us, but there are way more people who are swayed into a sport by eye candy and marketing gimmicks. Obviously some phenom of an attractive athlete doesn't make the game, but it's those few and far between that are that add allure to sports. At the end of the day though, it comes down to who's willing to fork out the initial investment to a PR firm to make the sport big. Unfortunately Yonex is a conservative corporation, and the BWF is so disorganized that this'll probably never happen.
Its all about image, badminton does not have a cool image, simple as that. All these companies want to appears stylish and cool. Badminton is scoffed at here, so no company is going to want to assosiate with it
I think to popularize badminton,we need every badminton equipment companies holding hands with the sport ministry of each countries..sponsor n push some more badminton tournaments.If possible,make some advertising on TV,like nike n adidas did with the soccer n basketball,n not just promote their new products,but also to promote the sport.
badminton's growth in the US I was surprised to learn recently that my country, the US, was a badminton powerhouse in the 50's and 60's, yet growing up I was hardly aware of the sport. It is perplexing that a similar sport like tennis (which I find far less interesting in the speed, strategy and stroke selection available to the players) has captured the popular imagination while badminton has not. I think the primary reason for this is the lack of exposure in the media. The local sports pages do not even mention the few badminton tournaments that are held. Television rarely shows badminon, and then only on ESPN at 2a.m.. I have no doubt that the changing demographics, with the international workplace and increasing numbers of residents from Asia and Europe will create awareness of the great demand for badminton coverage that already exists here, esp. in the major urban centers. Once treated to greater coverage of the sport on tv and other media, people will then start to recognize the great names and personalities at the forefront of badminton, which will in turn, create more interest in our sport. The 2008 Olympics could be an excellent introduction to the sport for many, if the networks and sports stations get off their parochial coverage of only sports that Americans are familiar with. Maybe we in the US should start a mass writing campaign demanding more coverage to the relevant tv networks???
Corporate sponsors I agree with AZbadman that Gatorade and any other company that seeks exposure to the Asian market should take note of one of the world's fastest-growing sports. They should recognize, too, that the sport's rapid rise in the US as well and find it worthwhile to pitch to badminton and other net game players. I think I will start writing to them today.
