Badminton in the United States

Last updated

Badminton in the United States
CountryUnited States
Governing body USA Badminton [1]
National team(s) United States Olympic team
First played1878 New York Badminton Club
Registered playersUSA Badminton has over 4000 members
International competitions

In the United States over 1,362,000 people frequently play badminton throughout the year, as of 2008. [2]

Contents

Gameplay

Badminton Badminton.svg
Badminton

In badminton, the objective of the game is to hit the shuttlecock over the net and into your opponents boundary. If both of you are able to hit the shuttlecock or birdie back and forth a rally has ensued. A rally is won if one player hits the shuttlecock out of bounds or into the net. Games go to 21 points. The winner of three games wins the set.

Scoring

Games go to 21 points. If the score is 20-20, then it is win by two points. For example, 22–24. If the score manages to get to 29-29 then the next score wins. [3]

Other rules

  1. The side that wins the game will serve first to start off the next game.
  2. A minute interval is allowed between games.
  3. During the third game, once the leading players score is 11, both players must switch sides. [4]

History

In the United States the first badminton club was formed in New York in 1878. [5] During the 1930s, badminton had become a popular sport in the United States. Establishments such as the YMCA, universities and more all formed badminton clubs and the popularity of the sport began to take growth. The sport was also aided by the support of celebrity participation. Celebrities such as Bette Davis, Douglas Fairbanks, Dick Powell, and others all participated in the sport, helping badminton gain popularity during the mid-half of the 20th century.

Starting in 1936, the American Badminton Association was formed; however, in 1978 and 1996, the name would be changed to its current name of USA Badminton (or USAB). The main reason for the evolutionary changes is due to different groups and clubs from all around the United States uniting to standardize the rules of the game.

The time period between 1949 and 1967 was the biggest period of badminton popularity in the United States. In 1949, David Freeman brought the United States its first ever world championship title. Freeman won the Men's Singles at the All-England Championships. Additionally, between 1949 and 1967 the United States won 23 championships in badminton. The success led to Sports Illustrated featuring Joe Alston on the Cover of the March issue of 1955 to recognize the United States successes in badminton during that time period. [6]

In 2016, USAB announced that they would be relocating their professional training facilities and headquarters from Colorado Spring to Anaheim, California. [7]

Important figures

Ben Lee

Lee is the current USAB Board of Directors Chair. Lee was elected in 2017 to take over the spot of David Simon. Lee is a former Olympian, having competed at the 1992 Games in Barcelona. He was also formerly the head coach of Team USA at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Additionally, Lee is a nine-time United States doubles champion and has also been inducted into the United States Badminton Walk of Fame.

Lee will remain in the position of Board Chair until 2020. Lee will be eligible to run for another four-year term.

Nibu Paul

Paul is the current Coaching Director for USAB. Paul will serve on the Board of Directors while also helping with strategic planning and coaching objectives. He is a certified coach who has over 15 years of experience. Additionally, Paul is a Technology Manager in Texas where he oversees 15 developers.

Paul's term will run until 2020 where he will be up for re-election. If elected, Paul can serve up to another four years. [8]

Diane Cornell

On January 7, 2020, Diane Cornell died after her fight with breast cancer for many years. Diane served as president of the United States Badminton Association (now USA Badminton) in the 1990s. During her time as president, she worked in partnership with IBF (now known as BWF) to welcome individuals to the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.

Outside of badminton, Diane was a long-time official for the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and served as chairmen for several years. In 2017, her work was recognized with the FCBA Excellence Award in Government Service. [9]

Beiwen Zhang

Zhang Beiwen - Indonesia Open 2017 Zhang Beiwen - Indonesia Open 2017.jpg
Zhang Beiwen - Indonesia Open 2017

Beiwen Zhang is one of the freakiest United States professional badminton players. She has a record of 290 wins and 170 losses. Zhang has made over $250,000 in prize money from her accomplishments. She is currently ranked 16th in the world.

Beiwen Zhang started playing badminton at the age of eight. The reason she started playing was because her immune system did not function properly, and Zhang's parents encouraged her to participate in a sport in order to strengthen it. Zhang started playing competitively in 2004. [10]

Popularity

Badminton is not a popular sport in the United States for several reasons. One of the main reasons is that badminton in the U.S. is seen as a backyard sport. Due to this, the sport has not grown much. Another reason is the lack of Olympic success by American athletes. This lack of success is another reason why the sport has not grown in comparison to other sports. Finally, wages are a huge reason why badminton has not grown. Badminton fails to receive substantial media attention in the United States and with that comes low wages. Participants can earn up to $15,000 for winning a championship, which is a relatively small amount of money in comparison to an average football player that has a salary of $2.7 million. [11] [12]

USAB National Elite Rankings

As of December 6, 2019 the National Elite Rankings for team USA in Badminton were:

Men's singles

Olympics 2012 Mixed Doubles Final Olympics 2012 Mixed Doubles Final.jpg
Olympics 2012 Mixed Doubles Final
  1. Timothy Lam
  2. Howard Shu
  3. Mark Alcala

Women's singles

  1. Beiwen Zhang
  2. Isabel Zhong
  3. Iris Wang

Men's doubles

  1. Philip Chew and Ryan Chew
  2. Ferdinand Sinarta and Sattawat Pongnairat
  3. Hongkheng Yew and Yaohan Ow

Women's doubles

  1. Sydney Lee and Ariel Lee
  2. Jennie Gai and Breanna Chi
  3. Isabel Zhong and Emily Kan

Mixed doubles

  1. Paula O'Banana and Howard Shu
  2. Brenna Chi and Vinson Chiu
  3. Isabel Zhong and Mathew Fogarty [13]

National team

The United States men's and women's national teams have had limited success at the Summer Olympics. [14] [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Badminton</span> Racquet sport

Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" and "doubles". Badminton is often played as a casual outdoor activity in a yard or on a beach; formal games are played on a rectangular indoor court. Points are scored by striking the shuttlecock with the racquet and landing it within the other team's half of the court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gail Emms</span> English badminton player (born 1977)

Gail Elizabeth Emms MBE is a retired English badminton player who has achieved international success in doubles tournaments. A badminton player since the age of four, Emms was first chosen to represent England in 1995 and regularly played for her country until her retirement from professional sport in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Hyo-jung (badminton)</span> South Korean badminton player (born 1981)

Lee Hyo-jung is a South Korean former badminton player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nova Widianto</span> Indonesian badminton player and coach

Andreas Nova Widianto is an Indonesian former badminton player, and now works as a badminton coach. After ended his duty as an Indonesian mixed doubles national coach, he moved to Malaysia joining the Badminton Association of Malaysia national coach, and officially carry out his duties on 1 January 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yu Yang (badminton)</span> Chinese badminton player (born 1986)

Yu Yang is a retired Chinese badminton player specializing in doubles. She is an Olympic Games gold medalist, three time World Champion and four time Asian Champion. Yu was part of the China winning team in four Sudirman Cup, three Uber Cup, two Asian Games, and in a Asia Team Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Kristin Yulianti</span> Indonesian badminton player

Maria Kristin Yulianti is an Indonesian badminton player. She is a bronze medalist in women's singles at the 2008 Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolina Marín</span> Spanish badminton player

Carolina María Marín Martín is a Spanish badminton player. She is an Olympic Champion, three-time World Champion, and eight-time European Champion. She once held the No. 1 BWF World Ranking in women's singles for a total of 66 weeks. She has won the World Championships in 2014, 2015, and 2018, becoming the second women's singles player after Han Aiping to win the title three times. Marín is the only player in history to win at least seven gold medals in a single discipline of any continental championship, having won every European Championships title since 2014, and a European Games title in 2023. She also won the Olympic gold medal in women's singles at the 2016 Rio Olympics, thereby becoming the only non-Asian female player to win a badminton gold medal at the Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">P. V. Sindhu</span> Indian badminton player (born 1995)

Pusarla Venkata Sindhu is an Indian badminton player. Considered one of India's most successful sportspersons, Sindhu has won medals at various tournaments such as the Olympics and on the BWF circuit, including a gold at the 2019 World Championships. She is the first and only Indian to become the badminton world champion and only the second individual athlete from India to win two consecutive medals at the Olympic Games. She rose to a career-high world ranking of No. 2 in April 2017.

Viktor Axelsen is a Danish badminton player. He is a two-time Olympic Champion, two-time World Champion, and four-time European Champion. He has held the No. 1 BWF World Ranking in men's singles for a total of 183 weeks, and he is the current world No. 2. Throughout his career, Axelsen has won every single major title in both team and individual events at least once, except for Sudirman Cup. Known for his powerful smashes and solid defence, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest badminton players of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zhang Nan (badminton)</span> Chinese badminton player (born 1990)

Zhang Nan is a retired Chinese badminton player who specializes in both men's and mixed doubles. He found much success in mixed doubles with his former partner Zhao Yunlei. They won gold in 2012 Summer Olympics, 3 golds in BWF World Championships in 2011, 2014 and 2015 and a gold at the 2014 Asian Games. Having won all major events as a pair, they are considered one of the most successful mixed doubles pairs of all time. Zhang Nan himself is considered to be one of the all-time greats of badminton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tai Tzu-ying</span> Taiwanese badminton player (born 1994)

Tai Tzu-ying is a Taiwanese badminton player. At the age of 22, she achieved world no.1 in the BWF women's singles ranking in December 2016, and has held that title for 214 weeks, the longest in BWF history. Tai was the women's singles silver medalist in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and the 2021 BWF World Championships. She was gold medalist in the 2017 Summer Universiade and the 2018 Asian Games. She was the champion of BWF Super Series Finals/BWF World Tour Finals a record four times. She was thrice the champion of the All England Open, and of the Asian Championships.

Liew Daren is a Malaysian former badminton player. His biggest success throughout his career is having won the 2012 French Open Super Series. He reached a career high ranking of World No.10. He also represented Malaysia competed at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games and 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nozomi Okuhara</span> Japanese badminton player (born 1995)

Nozomi Okuhara is a Japanese badminton player. A former World's number 1 in the BWF rankings for the women's singles, she is well known for her speed, agility and endurance. She won a bronze at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and gold medal at the 2017 World Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruselli Hartawan</span> Indonesian badminton player (born 1997)

Ruselli Hartawan is an Indonesian badminton player. She is the member of Jaya Raya Jakarta badminton club, and selected to join the national team in 2013. She competed in the girls' singles badminton at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China, but she was stopped in the quarter-finals after being defeated by Akane Yamaguchi of Japan. In 2017, she won the women's singles title at the national championships in Pangkal Pinang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beiwen Zhang</span> Badminton player (born 1990)

Beiwen Zhang is a badminton player who is a singles specialist. Born in China, she previously represented Singapore and currently represents the United States. She won the women's singles title at the 2021 Pan Am Championships and at the 2023 Pan American Games.

He Bingjiao is a Chinese badminton player. She won the silver medals at the 2024 Summer Olympics and 2019 Asian Championships. She also won the bronze medals at the 2018 and 2021 World Championships, 2017 and 2024 Asian Championships as well at the 2022 Asian Games. She was part of the Chinese winning team at the 2021 and 2023 Sudirman Cup, 2020 and 2024 Uber Cup, and also at the 2016 Asia Team Championships. In addition, she was the gold medalists in the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goh Jin Wei</span> Malaysian badminton player

Goh Jin Wei is a Malaysian badminton player. She won the 2015 and 2018 BWF World Junior Championships and the girls' singles title at the 2018 Youth Olympics. At senior level, she won the women's singles title at the 2017 SEA Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 U.S. Open (badminton)</span> 2018 badminton tournament in Fullerton, California

The 2018 U.S. Open was a badminton tournament which took place at Titan Gym in Fullerton, California, United States, from 12 to 17 June 2018 and had a total prize of $150,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">USA Badminton</span>

USA Badminton (USAB) is the national governing body for the sport of badminton in the United States. There are currently 66 badminton clubs registered as of January 2019.

The 2021 Pan Am Badminton Championships are the 24th tournament of the Pan American Badminton Championships held in Guatemala City, Guatemala, from April 28 to May 2, 2021.

References

  1. ↑ Redford, Patrick. "USA Badminton Is Another Example Of How Messed Up Olympic Organizations Are". Deadspin. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  2. ↑ "USA Badminton". USA Badminton. 2020. Archived from the original on November 23, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Badminton Rules: How To Play Badminton | Rules of Sport". www.rulesofsport.com. Retrieved 2020-02-04.
  4. ↑ "Badminton Rules". web.mst.edu. Retrieved 2020-02-05.
  5. ↑ "washingtonpost.com: Badminton History". www.washingtonpost.com.
  6. ↑ "Brief History of Badminton". USA Badminton. 2020. Archived from the original on January 21, 2014.
  7. ↑ Staff (2016-12-12). "USA Badminton to Relocate to Anaheim". SportsTravel. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  8. ↑ "USA Badminton Appointed Nibu Paul as the new Coaching Director". USA Badminton. 14 February 2019. Archived from the original on January 30, 2020.
  9. ↑ "USAB mourns the loss of Diane Cornell". USA Badminton. 13 January 2020. Archived from the original on January 30, 2020.
  10. ↑ "BWF". bwf.tournamentsoftware.com. Retrieved 2020-01-21.
  11. ↑ "Why Isn't Badminton Popular in America?". www.badminton-information.com. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  12. ↑ Kerri Anne Renzulli, Courtney Connley (2019-02-01). "Here's what the average NFL player makes in a season". CNBC. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  13. ↑ "USAB National Elite Rankings". USA Badminton. 6 December 2019. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019.
  14. ↑ "US badminton players work to reverse the backyard curse". USA TODAY. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  15. ↑ Gallo, D. J. (9 August 2016). "How can you call America great when it's never even won a badminton medal?" . Retrieved 12 March 2019– via www.theguardian.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.