Hello, I have played badminton for about a year now and am interested in acquiring proper shoes for the sport. Unfortunately it is very difficult to find popular brands such as Yonex, Mizuno, and Victor in my area without having to buy online, which I would like to avoid doing. After doing some searches, I have come upon an Asics badminton shoe called the Gel Rocket 8 and am wondering if this is a good choice. Here is the link: https://www.sportchek.ca/categories...door-court-shoes-blackwhitegum-332339146.html
Yumo.ca is a Richmond based retailer with store front and online. Ace Badminton is another authorized Victor dealer in your area. Sportcheck also carries Yonex shoes. You can order online and always return if wrong size or don't like them.
That's a good shoe. Make sure to try it out at the store. Yonex and Victor shoes are overrated and over priced.
You may find the Asics a bit on the heavier side and have a bit less lateral support, but they'll suffice. Depending on your size there are few Yonex,Victor shoes available for about $100. eg https://yumo.ca/collections/badminton-shoes/products/yonex-shb-02-mx-badminton-shoe
Im not sure about the Gel Rocket 8 but I just got my Gel Blade 6 a few weeks ago. I'd say it very well grounded. Fits quite well and I got it for 72USD. Would definitely recommend it.
I had different Asics gel Blade models from late 2009 until this year and was very satisfied with them. Blade models are low grounded, very responsive but less lateral support and less heel cushoning (latest gel Blade 5 and 6 are getting worse in this department). I switched back to Yonex after almost 10 years because of weight and age gain and cushoning on heel has become a problem for me. Otherwise I have wide feet, my natural number is EU 44,5 and always had to use 45 on Asics Gel models but price / performance ratio on Asics is really good and I have nothing bad to say about them apart the cushoning issue. Nowadays I use Eclipsion Z wide model and it works for me stability and cushoning wise but had quite a longer break in period that with most Asics pairs I used in last years.
I'd like to add a contrasted opinion. I've played squash and badminton with Asics Gel Blade 5 shoes, on all different kinds of floors and in different locations. I've had several ankle injuries with them. I've then played with a pair of PC-O3Z, it was night and day for me. They felt as if they had better grip, and lighter maybe than the Asics, but most importantly I've played with them for a very long time and only had 1 ankle incident with them (after many many hours of play on the same day, way past exhaustion point). I liked them so much that I bought a second pair. This may or may not hold true for everyone. We have different feet size, and width, and body weight, and of course different footwork, but for me at least it definitely was worth it spending a few dozen $ more for a great pair of shoes, and take good care of them (I wish I had bought them directly before the Asics). In my case, the expensive shoes were the ones with the lowest price tag (Asics), not just because of the injuries, but also because they are still in good enough shape to be used (good quality, material wise) but stay unused. A $100-130 pair of shoes that you will use many hours every week for months or years until they are completely dead are cheaper than a $70 pair that you'll just use for just a fraction of their usable life. I hope this may save you some money, maybe some injuries, and afford you amazing play hours with a great pair of shoes.
