Introduction

It is a sport masked by numerous misconceptions, and hardly noted for its rapid gameplay, sheer physical exertion and its title as the "fastest racket sport". Unfortunately, when people hear the word "badminton," these are not the first thoughts that come to mind. When I started playing badminton competitively in high school, I had noticed a consistent echo of misunderstandings about the sport. These misunderstandings came from school athletes who had not experienced the true intensity of the sport, and from students who underestimated badminton. Even though badminton can be played more recreationally sport, it is upsetting for serious players who devote their lives to the sport to hear it given a bad reputation as, "easy", "a backyard sport", "wimpy", or that it "requires no skill". These ideas must be smashed from popular belief so badminton can grow in the United States as a respectable sport. Through my research and personal experiences, I believe that understanding the basic fundamentals of badminton, and how badminton matches-up against other sports, can combat the misconceptions. In addition to these issues, badminton has not been completely recognized in society because of its foreign origins, compared to American sports like football and baseball.

Chapter 1: Serving the Facts

The origins of badminton are fairly ambiguous, since a majority of sources have conflicting beliefs. However, most sources agree that the Chinese invented a racket-less variation of badminton in 500 BC, and its influence branched out to European and Asian countries. By the 16th century, European nobility began to play, and the sport became closer to what it is today. Game rules began to form, and basic wooden rackets were used. From the 20th century to current day, players have been training at private clubs to represent their country in competitions around the world.

A majority of Asian countries have proven to be strong contenders, with China as the most dominant force by ruthlessly taking 3 out of 5 gold medals in the 2008 summer Beijing Olympics. The reason for such dominance can be seen in the way that the Chinese "government takes care of the athletes' housing, meals and training. Therefore, China's athletes do not have to worry about anything except for playing badminton and preparing for competitions (Yap)." In fact, it wasn't until 1996 that badminton became an official Olympic sport. The addition of badminton to the Olympics was a tremendous leap forward towards greater respect for the sport. People could actually see professional players battle with astonishing court speed in singles, and unprecedented reflexes in doubles. However, "what is amazing is that when you watch badminton on television, it seems to move slowly. It is difficult to appreciate how fast it is until you watch it live (Reynolds)." Unlike watching a badminton game on a television or computer, by watching it live you can see a close-up of all the dynamics and get a stronger understanding and appreciation for the sport.

Chapter 2: Unmatched Game Dynamics

In a live game one can see how badminton has many similar attributes to racket sports like squash and tennis, and it is played on a rectangular court, 20 feet wide for doubles, 17 feet wide for singles, and 44 feet long for both doubles and singles. In addition, a five-foot high net to stop poorly hit shots bisects the court. This gives each player 374 square feet of the court to defend in a singles game with only his or her racket. Simply put, the overall goal and strategy of the game is to get the shuttlecock, a plastic or feather projectile, to land onto your opponent's court and end the rally. This is accomplished by utilizing shots such as the backcourt drop, jump smash and full court clear.

At high levels of play, getting the shuttlecock onto your opponent's court is not an easy task. It can only be achieved through numerous hours of repetitive footwork training until "covering the entire court becomes almost effortless" (Lam). In an interview with coach Wai Lam of the Mountain View High School Badminton team, he describes that his core focus is footwork for greatest improvement. The secondary requirement is that players must master precise and consistent shuttlecock placement with little or no error. Gaining consistency is done through repetitive arm strength training exercises that focus on stimulating thousands of muscle fibers along the arm. The speed and repetitiveness of badminton arm movements is unmatched by any basic weight lifting exercise.

When hitting a shuttlecock, a badminton player's strongest weapon is his/her wrist. A player that has explosive wrist power, like Fu Haifeng of China, can strike the shuttlecock to speeds up to 332km/hr. If arm power is not enough, deceptive shots can be used to gain an edge on your opponent. Deceptive shots are about catching your opponent off guard to eliminate their factor of anticipation. This is accomplished by tricking your opponent into preparing for a shot in one direction, when you hit in another. Shots like this involve quick flicks of the wrist along with sudden changes in racket head angle. If done properly, deceptive shots are excellent ways to end a long rally and display amazing talent and skill.

Chapter 3: Do you have what it takes?

Many students, who join badminton for the enjoyment, the exercise, or for school credits, begin their training in high school. In California, and most specifically the Bay Area, participation has increased substantially in schools over the past 20 years. This growth has shown most commonly in greater Asian communities. However, most schools outside of California haven't offered badminton as a sport option yet. At the moment around 15,000 high school students play nationwide, compared to the more than one million students that play basketball.

To demonstrate badminton's popularity at MVHS, the 2010 to 2011 badminton season started with an astonishing 100-plus players competing for team placement. A portion of which gave the impression that they were solely trying out for the team to get "easy" high school credits. In the first week alone, up to 10 people dropped out because the conditioning was too intensive. Later, another 38 or so were cut to create the final team roster of around 52, even though only 42 players would be able to participate in games. Wai Lam, the MVHS badminton coach, describes this issue: "to be on the team you have to have a lot of effort because there are, a lot of drills, a lot of footwork, a lot of physical practice and if you try to just get the credits you wouldn't go through such a rigorous exercising sport to just try and get credits. You can tell from the practice schedule that it is really demanding and almost six days a week and two hours a day just getting the credit would be too much."

Chapter 4: Go National or Go Home

Understanding that every athlete has his or her own personal opinion on sports is important to removing the misconceptions about badminton. Since badminton's popularity is fairly sparse in the U.S., comparing badminton to more popular sports such as tennis or volleyball is key. For instance, tennis is the most popular racket sport in America and is promoted by the media with advertising, and product sponsorships with superstar players like Roger Federer who has made over 30 million dollars so far in his young career. In comparison, one of the largest badminton tournaments in the U.S., MIT Boston has an abysmal prize for men's and women's singles of only $1,400, which barely covers the cost of traveling. Where is the court equality? Compared to tennis, athletes underestimate badminton, as how coach Almirola from Bintang describes that "back in my country it was funny because many of my friends preferred tennis over badminton, and they said "no" to badminton, "it's easy". So, I invited them to play a couple of games with me. Then after we played they just made excuses saying "oh sorry", "oh I hurt this", "oh my muscles hurt". This had changed their view about badminton." Ricel Almirola's personal experience perfectly demonstrates how people expect little from badminton players, as if learning to properly play badminton requires no skill.

From the view of a recreational player, Bob Davis, claims how, "actually compared to tennis, badminton is faster, I think because the distances are shorter, and there are more techniques for drops." Even though a tennis court is much larger, in one study it found that in an average tennis game a player will run up to at least 2 miles, while in comparison, an average badminton player may run up to 4 miles or more.

Court Equality

Understanding that every athlete has his or her own personal opinion on sports is important to removing the misconceptions about badminton. Since badminton’s popularity is fairly sparse in the U.S., comparing badminton to more popular sports such as tennis or volleyball is key. For instance, tennis is the most popular racket sport in America and is promoted by the media with advertising, and product sponsorships with superstar players like Roger Federer who has made over 30 million dollars so far in his young career. In comparison, one of the largest badminton tournaments in the U.S., MIT Boston has an abysmal prize for men’s and women’s singles of only $1,400, which barely covers the cost of traveling. Where is the court equality? Compared to tennis, athletes underestimate badminton, as how coach Almirola from Bintang describes that “back in my country it was funny because many of my friends preferred tennis over badminton, and they said “no” to badminton, “it’s easy”. So, I invited them to play a couple of games with me. Then after we played they just made excuses saying “oh sorry”, “oh I hurt this”, “oh my muscles hurt”. This had changed their view about badminton.” Ricel Almirola’s personal experience perfectly demonstrates how people expect little from badminton players, as if learning to properly play badminton requires no skill.
From the view of a recreational player, Bob Davis, claims how, “actually compared to tennis, badminton is faster, I think because the distances are shorter, and there are more techniques for drops.” Even though a tennis court is much larger, in one study it found that in an average tennis game a player will run up to at least 2 miles, while in comparison, an average badminton player may run up to 4 miles or more.

Chapter 6: A View From Another Court

During the spring, the badminton team and the men's volleyball team at MVHS have developed a rivalry over court time and playing opportunities. This rivalry has created tension. Alec McDonald, a MVHS volleyball player, described how "there is this one drill where all you do is just move your wrist back and forth for a long time. It almost looks useless and time wasting." I understand where Alec is coming from, but he doesn't understand that the "useless" wrist movement drill is actually an important exercise to strengthen smashes and overhead clears. I guarantee that if Alec did the same drills with hundreds of repetitions, he would change his mind.

When I asked Alec about volleyball, I got an immediate response that "it is physically demanding and requires incredible focus and power." Basically the impression he gave is that badminton is "time wasting" while volleyball is "demanding." The interesting thing is that the two sports are actually quite similar in numerous ways. First, they both require explosive leg power to reach the maximum jump height. Second, you need strong triceps and shoulder muscles during a hit for power and stability. Lastly, the smashing form is nearly identical. In a smash you first bring back your arm to a 90-degree angle, then rotate out to your furthest reach and then end by "snapping" your hand forward on contact (volleyballdrillsnskills.com).

Chapter 7: A Shuttlecock to the Eye

One of the common misconceptions is that badminton is "wimpy" or that you do not have to be physically strong and resilient. Badminton injuries are different from contact sports like football where you can get knocked out of a season with one strong tackle. In badminton, injuries come from wear and tear of joints and muscles. The quick movements of badminton can be harmful and strenuous on players' bodies. At local gyms like Bintang or Sunnyvale Community Center you will see at least 50 percent of adult players wearing some type of knee, ankle, or shoulder brace. In one report it stated, "injuries during badminton have been reported to occur at a rate of 2.9 injuries per player per 1000 hours of badminton playing" (physioroom.com). Badminton requires "explosive power for flicks of the wrist, lunges, jumps and rapid changes of direction and these repeated actions can put stress on the tissues and cause injury" (physioroom.com).

To demonstrate the toughness and dedication by badminton players, MVHS coach Wai Lam had recently broken his Achilles tendon prior to the badminton season and was advised by his doctors not to play or even walk for two months. This setback had not stopped him from coaching badminton with charisma and determination to succeed in the season. Beyond overuse injuries, what all badminton players fear the most is being hit in the eye by such a fast projectile like the shuttlecock. Bob Davis described his personal and traumatic experience: "I was up at the net and I turned around to see what my partner was doing, and he had hit the bird and it went right into my eye. It had damaged my eye, and I was hospitalized for five days." Honestly, nothing shows true toughness and spirit like taking a shuttlecock to the eye and then returning back to play after a five-day recovery. Through the strength and determination displayed in these two instances, there is no way that badminton deserves the reputation as "wimpy."

Conclusion: Match Point

The misunderstandings that badminton is "easy", "requires no skill", or is "wimpy", have unreasonably given badminton a bad reputation. These thoughts about badminton need to be challenged from popular belief, so that badminton can continue to grow in the U.S. as a competitive sport that is challenging, requires immense mental focus, and surely matches up against sports like tennis and volleyball. In the future I am hopeful that badminton in the U.S. will become more understood, recognized as a competitive national sport that warrants media attention and becomes stronger against foreign countries like China in the Olympics.

Bibliography

Interviewees

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Almirola, Ricel. "Bintang Coach." Personal interview. 20 Mar. 2012.

Lam, Wai. "MVHS Badminton Coach." Personal interview. 17 Feb. 2012.

McDonald, Alec J. "Volleyball Player." Personal interview. 25 Feb. 2012.

Davis, Bob. "Recreational Badminton Player." Personal interview. 20 Mar. 2012.

Sources

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"How to Spike a Volleyball: Volleyball Drills 'n' Skills." Volleyball Drills 'n' Skills. 2007. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. http://www.volleyballdrillsnskills.com/how-to-spike-a-volleyball.html