Hey guys!!! Check this out. RP Open draws world’s No. 2 badminton tandem By Jasmine W. Payo Inquirer Last updated 05:33am (Mla time) 07/04/2007 MANILA, Philippines -- The world’s second-ranked pair of Koo Kiet Keat and Tan Boon Heong of Malaysia backstops a tough men’s doubles field in the Bingo Bonanza Philippine Open Badminton Championships which gets going July 18 at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City. Unbeaten since first teaming up in 2005, Koo and Tan clinched the Asian Games gold after disposing the fancied Indon pair of Luluk Hadiyanto and Alvent Yulianto Chandra in the men’s double finals in Doha, Qatar, last December. Koo and Tan will be up against a talent-laden field that includes world No. 6 Tony Gunawan of the Unites States and Candra Wijaya of Indonesia. The 21-year-old Koo and the 19-year-old Tan also bagged the doubles championship in the 2005 Denmark and Swiss Opens and the gold medal in the Commonwealth Games last year. Five of the world’s top 10 players are in the fold in the men’s singles, including Olympic and Asian Games champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia. Hidayat, seeded ninth in the latest world rankings, will mix it up against world No. 2 Chen Hong, No. 3 Lee and No. 6 Bao Chunlai of China and No. 8 Kenneth Jonassen of Denmark. The majority of the 35 Filipino bets, including 20 in singles, vie for spots in the tournament proper during the one-day qualifying on July 17. The Asuncion siblings -- Kennie and Kennevic -- will take another crack at the mixed doubles crown after losing last year’s title to Thais Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthangkam. Just like in the mixed doubles, Malaysians are favored to put up a tough fight in the singles competition. Defending champion Hafiz Hashim, world No. 3 Lee Chong Wei, Kay Bin Yeoh and Lee Buen Seng stand at the vanguard of Malaysia’s solid roster in men’s singles. World No. 11 Wong Mew Choo, runner-up in the recent Malaysia Super Series, and Wong Pei Xian Julia will spearhead Malaysia’s bid in women’s singles. The tandem of Lim Pek Siah and Quay Joan Swee Ling will be their women’s doubles bet, while the pair of Chan Peng Soon and Abdul Latif Nairul Suhaidu will carry the cudgels in the mixed doubles. The five-day event, sanctioned by the International Badminton Federation and organized by IMG, drew 319 players -- doubling last year’s roster and tripling the cast in the inaugurals -- from 31 countries. Source Inquirer.net Link -> http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/sports/view_article.php?article_id=74689
Err..the way this article is written is quite..confusing? When i read i have to read it over and over again just to understand what the article is trying to say. And whats up with KKK/TBH paired since 2005?? Won CG? Denmark Open? Yannie would be glad! Haha! I think she meant KKK/CCM..the writer doesn't know KKK changed partner..zzz.. Lee Buen Seng?? LMAOOOOOOOOOO!!! Abdul Latif Nairul Suhaida shud be Nairul Suhada Abd Latif
Hahaha.. What the heck.. She's got so many names wrong!!! And KKK/CCM took Denmark Open title 2005, not KKK/TBH.. FAINT. I was there to witness this.. LOL!
the media in Philippines better buck up... haha how could they get things such as this WRONG!!!! ??? haha
Gosh, what a shame. The reflection of how well badminton sports is doing in Philippines from the facts this writer knows, and worst of it all, it got published.
You're right! Badminton has been so popular in the Philippines. I believe the Philippines has the most number of badminton courts in the world. Ironically, we have not produced international caliber players. Every time I go to watch international badminton events, people would ask me why the Philippines has no entry or the only few players sent lost in the 1st round. I really don't know the answer.
Filipinos merely like to enjoy the game. The courts are full but only a few are seriously taking training lessons. Also, badminton is fairly new to the Philippines as compared to other countries. The craze started merely about 7 years ago, more or less, which is relatively a short time to produce world caliber players.
Well ... MEDIA should know the Details. So simple information also can be wrong. Well sometimes Msian media does too heheh.
I think it's because there is no government support for the game. Basketball and boxing have been the priorities. Hopefully if we can penetrate the international scene maybe some group will be interested in sponsoring young, talented and potential players. I believe we will be able to move forward particularly now that the game has gained its momentum.
