Vuvuzelas might be the big noise of the World Cup matches but there’s another type of racket starting to make the sporting headlines!
Badminton, which in the last year has attracted 50,000 new players throughout the UK, is becoming the big hit – and Sheffield and South Yorkshire is determined to capitalise on the trend by netting as many newcomers to the sport as possible.
Hillsborough Leisure Centre and Concord Sports Centre are hoping to harness and develop the latest talent by devising a four week training programme to build players’ fitness before they take to the court.
Their plan, which involves eight sessions, comes in the light of many international competitions being staged in the UK during the next four years. The best players in the world will be in London when it hosts the 2011 Badminton World Championships and Olympics in 2012, and in 2014 Glasgow will host the Commonwealth Games.
Sheffield’s new talent will be able to book court time at Hillsborough or Concord to practice their new skills.
Badminton has seen a huge rise in participation over the last four years since a simpler scoring system was rolled out internationally. It will make traditional point scoring obsolete in the future.
It is now considered the fastest racket sport in the world, with the fastest shuttlecock serve recorded reaching 206mph while the fastest tennis serve has only reached 155mph.
Currently badminton has more than 990, 000 adults playing at least once a month and the sport’s national governing body, Badminton England, wants to crack the one million mark as soon as possible.
Richard Apps, general manager for Hillsborough Leisure Centre and Concord Sports Centre, operated by Sheffield International Venues, said: “Badminton at a competitive level is extremely fast and explosive. A good player must be able to jump, twist, sprint, strike and lunge during a game.
“Fitness is extremely important but a lot of the badminton clubs in the UK don’t provide pre-season training as well as playing facilities.
“Our integrated approach to badminton means players, whether having fun or looking to compete, get the best training possible at our courts.”
To find out about booking a badminton court or to see the training programme, visit www.hillsboroughlc.co.uk or call 0114 231 2233.
