Thursday, May 26, 2011

Washington Open 2011 RESULTS

The 74th annual Washington Open 2011 is over...and boy were the results surprising!

Jokes like to flutter around about how the US always gets their trophies taken away by Canadian players in Washington tournaments (or in general--check the results in the Sudirman Cup)...but this year, the tables have turned!

Nicholas J took the Men's Singles Open crown this year in 3 close games with young Canadian Jacky T. Fantastic game to watch--everyone was at the edge of their seats as each point was fought for...close games, for sure! (21-18, 17-21, 21-18). No matching USA #4, though, and I'm sure Jacky will be back next year, better than ever.

Nicholas J. actually double crowned this year with Curtis S in Men's Doubles, again, against Jacky T. It was much easier for Nicholas J. this time around, though, ending with two relatively shorter games (21-15, 21-15).

Jacky's MD partner, Chi-Lin L, had much better luck in Mixed Doubles, grabbing the crown with Mixed Doubles partner Crystal C., beating last year runner-ups Kevin S. and Rosalynn C. easily, ending the two games at (21-9, 21-8). Due to the draw, Chi-Lin and Crystal were matched up against last year's winners Sisavat K and Masako C earlier on. They definitely put up a good 3-game fight, but to no avail.

Matching duo Vicky C and Renata B took out Canadian pair Rosalynn C and Malisa L in Women's Doubles. Three fantastic games, ending in a nail-biting deuce! But I guess it's time for the young ones to shine, and they definitely stole back the trophy!

Speaking of which, Vicky C was able to beat runner-up Amy J in Women's Singles as well. Actually...Vicky completely DOMINATED the Women's Singles division this year, taking out all of her opponents in two games! The only deuce that happened was the first game with Amy J-- way to stay in the game, Amy!

Players from all over the country + Canada were present this year



                                                                              (*above T-shirt designed by me!)
British Columbia, Calgary, California, Oregon, Montana, and of course--Washington!

All in all, it was a fantastic tournament with a HUGE turn out this year-- 251 entries!  The organizers, as usual, did a great job at running the tournament, and everyone is looking forward to next year's 75th annual WA Open celebration! They're expecting even more entries, and what can I say-- who wouldn't want to come back?

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Miscellaneous WA Open news:

As always, the finals games were recorded by various cameras all around the courts. But there was definitely a new way this time around: iPad2.
iPad2s were scattered all around the courts this year-- anyone know if the recording is any good? Technology is definitely changing the way we watch badminton!  For those of you who have the recordings of the finals, there are a few people looking for their games-- so if you have them, please e-mail us! We'd love to relive the moment, as well!

Hope you all enjoyed!

For those of you who missed out, or simply want to relive the excitement, the WA STATE GAMES is RIGHT around the corner!!! Don't forget to register-- the post for the State Games is coming soon!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Pre-Washington Open Excitement

Draws are out! For those of you curious, check'em out here:

http://www.tournamentsoftware.com/sport/draws.aspx?id=6ADB855F-A959-442A-8916-53EB79E861E3


Just for a little excitement, I figured I'd write an entry devoted to previewing the players and determining who I think will grab the trophies year!

*SPOILER ALERT....because I'm PSYCHIC...*

Tournamentsoftware reminds me of facebook, for you badminton-fanatics. Using the amazing search function, or by simply clicking the names of the players (granted they use the same name every tournament), you can check out their history--how well they've played against other players, what scores they got, who they used to play with, etc. From that, you can pretty much determine what kind of players they are! Helps you get a little ahead of your competition if you're up for doing your research!

A sigh of relief washes over Washington when they realize that Elisha L. can't make it down to Washington this year. She has a nasty habit double-triple crowning and stealing all of our trophies every year, so now's your chance to win'em back! (*hint to Amy 'Goddess' J.? Time to grab that Women's Singles!)

Unfortunately I'm not fluent with Canadian rankings, but the draw is implying a final of Vicky C. vs. Amy 'Goddess' J. The draw looks pretty mixed, though, and I'm looking forward to watching some great matches!

Rumor has it that Curtis' Californian(?) doubles partner Nicholas J. will be serving himself a platter with a few trophies of his own. It's no doubt that they'll make a great team, but against each other? That'll keep us at the edge of our seats. Could Curtis lose his Men's Singles trophy this year? (I guess it doesn't matter much, because Ernest S. is in the draw, and there's no doubt that 'God' can control the birdie with his mind.)

With that said, I'm surprised that Curtis and Nicholas aren't at the opposite end of the draw from last year's winners KSo and Vincent T. Instead, Ken F. and Jensen L. are--but they DID go into 3 relatively close games last year...it makes sense, looking at last year's tournament winners...so we'll see if they can keep their spots!

Rosalynn's back from Canada to defend her title in Women's Doubles--but with a new partner this year! Malisa, another Badmintology organizer, will be playing in Elisha's place! Can they take out their competition? I'd assume so--from my amateur guesses, I'd say their next best match would be against Christine C. and The Goddess. ("The Goddess" sounds better than just "Amy Goddess"). Then again, I'm not too fluent in Canadian rankings, so we'll see how it plays out.

Last but not least, mixed doubles. The finals for mixed always draws the biggest crowd--so much tension! The games against Sisavat and Masako against KSo and Ros were close last year-- 3 games, no doubt, one of them ending at 23-21. Grounds are shaky this year, since Long has been MIA from the badminton courts for a while (at least compared to last year...). Who knows what will happen! One thing's for sure-- neither is going down without a fight!

(*well...then again...Sisavat has been known for forfeiting matches before...but only in singles. So that shouldn't happen--no way.)



Of course, these are just blind guesses from the results last year. There are plenty of new names/faces this time around, so don't be fooled! SHOW NO MERCY! 21-0 if you have to--play it safe!


I hear the draw prizes this year are even better than the last, so no matter how your matches go, you could still walk away with a better prize in your hand! (I'd definitely take a racket or a bag over a trophy ANY day! But that's just me...)

We hope to see you all at the sunny, 74th annual Washington Open 2011!

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Sendai Relief Open

For those of you who want to help Japan but don't know where to start, SBC has been doing some great things.

JK of Seattle Badminton Club is organizing a "Sendai Relief Open", a mini-tournament dedicated to raising funds for those in Tokiwagi Gakuen High School in Sendai, Japan. All proceeds are going to the Japan Relief Fund, so test out your badminton skills for a good cause!

It's in a co-ed doubles format, and costs $25 per team.

Players have to provide their own birdies, but there will be some for you to purchase there, so no worries!

And for those of you who aren't members at SBC, the drop-in fee is included if you join--so all the better!

SENDAI RELIEF OPEN
When?: May 14, 2011, 7:00PM
Where?: Seattle Badminton Club
How much?: $25 per team
Deadline: MAY 14, 2011 AT NOON (day of the tourney)
E-mail jaikannan@gmail.com for entry
Anything special: A great charity tournament going to a good cause. A/B/C format!


The Washington Open is coming up, so this is a fantastic opportunity for you to train for the big tournament! Get to know your opponent's weakness! There isn't much time left for training, and this is a good place to put it all to the test!

e-mail Jaikannan at jaikannan@gmail.com! DO IT NOW!

On another great note

The Washington Open 2011 has a GREAT turn out this year! The tournamentsoftware player's page has so many people that the organizers aren't allowing any more entries, and no more extra people allowed at the banquet or else the buffet will be FLOODED! This is FANTASTIC NEWS, everyone! The Washington Open is growing rapidly each year! (It looks like there are more Canadians than Americans...what's going on here?!)

(Also, rumor has it that a great new player is coming from outside of Washington to show his skills....I wonder who that will be?! Watch out, seeded players!)

If you weren't able to sign up this year, don't worry too much--another international tournament, the WA State Games, is coming up at the end of June! Make sure you sign up for that one early to get a spot, and remember to sign up early for the Washington Open earlier next year!

See you all soon!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Solibad-- Badminton Without Borders


Solibad, Solibad, Solibad, Solibad.

It's hard to Google badminton without the name 'Solibad' popping up--and I'm glad that it has, or else I wouldn't have been so curious to check it out myself.

Solibad hasn't even reached a year old, and it's already been doing great things with the huge international badminton community. Connected with the top players of the world, it brings sport and community together to do it's part in helping to make the world a better place.

So what is it?

Solibad is an organization devoted to channeling the badminton community-- to use it's networking power, to raise funds for various projects around the world, some of which relate to badminton, and all of which will bring smiles to childrens faces all over the world.

Some of their projects have included "1000 Rackets for Haiti", "CAREFORKIDS Bali" (an orphanage in Indonesia), and many more--check'em out at their website: Projects.

Each country has their own badminton star who devotes their time and efforts to spreading the word, and it comes to no surprise that our very own Tony Gunawan is the ambassador for the USA (player profile on him coming soon!). I don't know who's more fit for the role. :)



The biggest project they have now to raise awareness is their Solibad Flashmob-- which is just as exciting as it sounds! If you've been on YouTube, you've probably seen plenty of Glee flashmobs that have taken place in public places all over the country....(one of the biggest happened a few weeks ago in Seattle Downtown!). Now's your chance to be in one...and for a good cause!

In the US, Solibad plans to have one in Chicago and Los Angeles-- so check the website if you want to join in! They plan to link dancers internationally on June 5, 2011 (day after my birthday!) to come together, dance their hearts out, and spread the word about the great things they're doing.


If you want to join in, then head on over to their site. Check out the top right menu, and click the corresponding links to what you qualify as. You can donate, become a Solibad ambassador, or just help them spread the word!


It's such an inspirational thing--what they're doing--and it's great to know that so many wonderful people are out there, doing what they can, and loving it.

Let's bring the badminton community even closer together, and make the world a better place... one step at a time. Spread the word about Solibad and do your part today!