Origins and History of Badminton

Facts and Information About the Game

A very long history for one of the Olympics newest sports! Badminton took its name
from Badminton House in Gloucestershire, the ancestral home of the Duke of Beaufort,
where the sport was played in the last century. Gloucestershire is now the base for the
International Badminton Federation.

The IBF was formed in 1934 with nine members: Canada, Denmark, France,
Netherlands, England, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The United States
joined four years later. Membership increased steadily over the next few years with a
surge in new members after the Olympic Games debut at Barcelona.

The first big IBF tournament was the Thomas Cup (men’s world team championships) in
1948. Since then, the number of world events has increased to seven, with the addition
of the Uber Cup (ladies’ team), World Championships, Sudirman Cup (mixed team),
World Juniors, World Grand Prix Finals, and the World Cup.

The World Cup invitational event started in 1981 and is organized by the International
Management Group (IMG). The World Cup series is due to end in 1997, and the IBF is
considering organizing exhibition matches featuring the world’s top players to replace
the World Cup.

For the recent Thomas and Uber Cups in Hong Kong, the sale of commercial and
television rights was a multimillion dollar contract. And it’s not just in Asia. In Europe
also, there’s a growing number of companies bidding for rights. Television companies
worldwide are already buying exclusive rights to the 1997 World Championships to be
held in Glasgow, Scotland.

A turning point in badminton’s growth was the $20 million tripartite contract in 1994 for
sponsorship of the World Grand Prix Finals. Under the terms of the deal between the
IBF, IMG, and STAR TV, STAR injects the monies into the promotion and development
of badminton. In return, STAR gains total exclusivity for the exploitation of the
commercial and television rights to the WGP Finals. “The deal was good for both main
parties,” said David Shaw, IBF’s executive director, who was brought into the
organization with a brief to grow the sport. “We needed a strong partner in television,
and the broadcaster had identified badminton as a vehicle which would attract
audiences across Asia to its prime sports channel.”

The next phase in the rise and rise of international badminton has been to retake the
USA. The U.S. was an early member of the IBF and initially one of the most successful.
When the Uber Cup was introduced in 1956, Americans won the first three events. But
then interest waned.

Badminton is a well liked and familiar sport in the USA but, predominantly, is usually
played as a fun game in the backyard or on the beach. We know that once Americans
see the other badminton—international badminton, the world’s fastest racket sport—
they will want to see and play more. The Atlanta Olympics started to raise the sport’s
profile in the U.S. The event was a sell-out and became one of the “must-see” sports.
Ex-President Jimmy Carter, Chelsea Clinton, Paul Newman, and Princess Anne were
among the celebrities who came to watch. David Broder of the Washington Post
reported “seeing one of the supreme athletic spectacles of my life.”

The year 1996 was a landmark in USA badminton. It’s not only the Atlanta Olympic
Games that started to generate tremendous interest in the U.S. market. In December
1995, the IBF introduced a new concept tournament in California, the Hong Ta Shan
Cup, a men’s invitation tournament with the best players and big prize money. There
are now plans to add a women’s event and to increase the prize money. The Hong Ta
Shan Group has gone on to sponsor the U.S. Open, increasing the prize money to
$200,000. This makes the event the most valuable World Grand Prix event in the series
and gives it six-star status.

The degree of change is increasing. Badminton’s debut as an Olympic Games sport has
manifestly boosted interest internationally. The STAR TV agreement has increased the
sport’s coverage dramatically. Sponsors and television companies are being attracted to
a sport which gives them access to the Asian economies. And spectators are
increasingly attracted to the exciting mix of angles, tactics, touch, reaction, and fitness
that would exhaust a squash champion.

2. What are the facilities and equipment of badminton?

Different versions of badminton have been played for centuries, but it was the game of "Poona"
in India that was the basis for the game of badminton we play today. In the 1860's a group of
stationed British army officers learned the game and took it back with them from India. The
game grew in popularity until 1895 when the Badminton Association of England was formed,
along with the rules of game play that are used around the world even today. In order to play
this form of badminton, certain equipment and facilities are needed
Racket
The badminton racket is one of the most important tools a player has in the game.
Badminton rackets are much lighter than most other sports rackets because they are
made from materials such as carbon fiber or lighter metals such as aluminum. Parts of
the racket include the head, throat, shaft and handle with a maximum length of 27.77
inches and a width of 9 inches. It Strings that are stretched across the opening of the
racket in a checkerboard pattern, which acts as the hitting surface. Badminton rackets
can vary widely in cost depending on whether they are purchased as part of a basic
backyard set or as more expensive professional models.

Shuttlecock
The badminton shuttlecock, also referred to as a shuttle or birdie, acts similarly to a ball
in other racket sports. However, the design of the birdie creates more drag as it is
propelled through the air due to its feathered shape. The shuttlecock is made up of a
cone shape with a hard cork at its tip. Shuttlecocks can be made from a variety of
materials -- more expensive models are actually made from feathers, and less
expensive models are made from plastic feathers. The shuttle has 16 feathers attached
to the base and the length of the feathers range between 2.44 and 2.75 inches.

Net
A mesh net divides the badminton court into two sides. A badminton net is placed lower
than a volleyball net at five feet and one inch high on the sides and five feet high in the
center. The length may vary depending on whether doubles or singles are playing, with
singles reaching 17 feet and doubles reaching 22 feet. The net is 30 inches wide with a
3-inch white tape doubled over the top.

Facilities
The badminton court should be 44 feet long by 22 feet wide if playing doubles, and 44
feet long by 17 feet wide for singles. If the facility is indoors, there needs to be enough
height for the shuttlecock to be able to float across the net without hitting the ceiling.
This height will vary depending on the strength of the players.