Last Sunday was a very busy day for my husband and I. First off, we had to go to Club 650 Badminton Court along Libis, Q.C. for the Rexona Cup. No, my husband did not join that tournament because it wasn't open for national and ex-national players. Instead, they were part of an exhibition team, the PB Shuttlers, to be launched that day. As mentioned in my earlier post, the PB Shuttlers are composed of former ex-national champions and players who were tapped by Pinoy Badminton Inc. to perform badminton exhibition matches (ala Harlem Globetrotters style.)
I am happy to announce the PB Shuttlers received very good feedbacks during the exhibition match. They did not just exhibit their talent in the court, they also elicited guffaws and thunderous applause from the audience because of their funny, yet unstaged (*wink*wink*), antics. Here they are:
Badong "The Magician" Banquiles
Jojo "The Gentle-" Mance
Ronald "McDonald" Magnaye
Rocky "Balboa" Magnaye
After their exhibition match, we had a light lunch and proceeded to the MAP (Malaysian Association of the Philippines) Badminton Tournament held at Powersmash Makati. My husband paired off with Denden Dimarucot, the #1 varsity player of University of the East.Jojo Mance and Denden Dimarucot
Unfortunately, they were immediately pitted against the Indonesian pair, Rudy Wijaya and Kwee Tek Min, former members of the Indonesian National Team. What can I say? They really tried their best but they eventually lost to the Indonesian pair.
Rudy Wijaya and Kwee Tek Min
Even the powerful duo of Ian Piencenaves (2006 JVC Champion) and Jaime Junio, current member of the national team, were no match against the Indonesian pair. Piencenaves and Junio even won the first set. The game went to a deciding set but was eventually won by the Indonesian pair.
Ian Piencenaves and Jaime Junio
The winners of the tournament? The Indonesian pair of Rudy Widjaya and Kwee Tek Min. Filipinos have yet to go a long way in becoming world caliber badminton players. The Asuncion siblings (Kennevic and Kennie), are one step closer since they are currently ranked #20 in the world, according to the 24 August 2006 ranking issued by the International Badminton Federation. Unfortunately, we do not have the opportunity to shine in regional tournaments because the world champions are also from Asia (China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Korea, among others.) But at least, our Filipino shuttlers are trying their best. They need more support from the government if we ever dream of bagging the World Championship, the Olympics or the Thomas and Uber Cup someday.
Tag category: Badminton Tournament ; PB Shuttlers
Tag category: Badminton Tournament ; PB Shuttlers
21 comments:
If given proper training, I think we have a chance winning in international badminton tournaments. I hope Pinoys will start to love the sport and patronize it instead of basketball where we don't stand a chance getting recognized because of our height limitation.
I agree with Niko, I don't know why we always try to aspire to be world champions in a sport where our 'vertical' limitations are more of a liability than an asset.
Famous pala ang husband mo, ladybug. And he looks tall, and handsome of course. :)
Wow, the Ascuncion brothers being at no. 20 at world rankings is already such an an honor. They must be real good.
The Indonesians are really doing well and I think that Widaya guy was once an Olympic medalists. I hope I am right.
i agree with niceheart, your better half is handsome as can be.
For me, the best in badminton region wise: Indonesia, Malaysia & China (not in order). Haven't really taken a good look at Korea and Thailand though.
I don't know if sports really have some serious budget (deficit...lol) to do all training. If there is, it's not showing yet.
Guessing time again, kilala ko na hubby ni Ladybug, ayun oh. :)
Wow,this is great!THanks for popping by my blog...I can now ask you for tricks for badminton ;)
Genial
That must be amazing, to see so much high quality badminton live like that.
Andrew
To Love, Honor and Dismay
I'm so sorry I missed these events :(
I think I had seen that #1 varsity player of UE -- this team usually work out at the courts I sometimes play at -- Perigrine here in Manila.
Please keep us posted with upcoming events; if there's one nearby, I'll definitely come to watch.
Incidentally, I heard that as in basketball, varsity scouts favor tall badminton players.
abaniko> I agree with you there. If given the proper training, we can excel in this sport. But more people still prefer basketball because the payoff is greater.
snglguy> True, it's really difficult to excel in a sport dominated by giants. At least in badminton, we have a fighting chance. Melvin Llanes, my husband's partner before in mens doubles, won the world junior championship during his teens, and he's just 5'4".
niceheart> Thanks! *blush* He's not that famous anymore. He retired in 1995, but he retired unbeaten. Hahaha...pasensha na. I'm just really proud of him.
major tom> thanks also! *blush* Yes, the Asuncions are our current pambato. They're really good. I'm hoping they get a chance to compete in the upcoming olympics. By the way, Rudy Wijaya is the cousin of Candra Wijaya. If I'm not mistaken, it's Candra who's an Olympic medalist. Magagaling talaga sila.
ipanema> Ssshhhh...hahaha! Oops, I forgot, Malaysians are also one of the best in the region. Koreans used to be better than Malaysians, but they've been overtaken by the Malaysians. Other countries are starting to take this sport seriously and have sent their players to China in order to train. But this requires a lot of budget, which we all know, is lacking in our country.
genial> thanks for dropping by too! You can ask me anytime...and I'll ask my husband for the answer. :-)
andrew> Yes, that's the reason why I always accompany my husband to these events. I like watching badminton tournaments up close. Thanks for dropping by!
eric> sayang...but don't worry, there will be more events like this. The MAP badminton tournament is an annual tournament.
Yes, the UE varsity team normally practices at peregrine. While height does have its advantages, it does not make nor break the career of a badminton player. Kennevic Asuncion, current RP#1, is not that tall. Indonesians, who used to dominate this sport, are not a tall breed. Kapareho lang natin sila sa height.
Sayang di ako makakapanood ng mga badminton tournaments na ganyan. Sarap pa namang panooring kapag talagang magagaling ang manlalaro.
Sayang din kasi maraming talented na mga Pinoy pag dating sa ibat-bang klaseng sports na kayang kaya nating mag excel pero ang government, walang pakiaalam. Just like in tennis, ang dami magagaling pero their talents are just wasted.
Anyhow, good luck to you and your husband and the Pinoy Badminton Inc.
I hope you have tournaments like these during summer so I can watch.
myepinoy> Sayang nga talaga. At tama ka, hindi lang sa badminton kundi sa ibang larangan din tulad ng tennis. Thanks for wishing my husband luck. :-) Wag ka mag-alala, marami namang tournaments all year round, lalo na pag summer. :-)
great exhibition! galing pala ng hubby mo ladybug!
I think that tourney organizers should also include open and junior players. Medyo slim na chances natin with the current crop.
lazarus> Thanks! I agree with you there. We should place more emphasis in training the future generation of athletes in various sports, not just in badminton. :-)
wow...we have a Pinoy @ #20? not bad considering how late we got into the game. the indonesians have been seriously competing for years. we'll get better i'm sure. hubby's cute, ladybug! and the new layout is very clean-looking..
COOL.....R U VERY PRO IN BADMINTON....LOOKS LIKE u r very good in it....i luv badminton as much as u do....goood luck 4 ur future compotitions!:]
mita> Thanks! *blush* Yes, they're currently at #20 although they were already at #18 or 16 before. Hope you enjoyed your trip! :-)
georgepro> Haha..I'm not a pro...just a professional spectator. It's my husband who's the pro. I play for fun although sometimes I still join tournaments. Anyway, thanks for dropping by! :-)
Would you know kung saan pwede ma-contact yung Indonesian players tulad nila Rudy Widjaya, Kwee Tik Min at Minarti Timur?
Will appreciate your replyl
anonymous> Sorry dear, I don't have their contact numbers. WHy don't you try contacting Asuncion Badminton Center? I'm sure they are in constant contact with these people. Sorry couldn't be of much help.
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