China, Korea favorite to win junior c'ship

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Thanks to their outstanding long-term development programs, China and South Korea are expected to dominate the eighth Asian Badminton Junior Championship, due to begin on Monday in the Indoor Tennis Stadium here.

Head of the tournament organizing committee Mimi Irawan said on Thursday that host Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan would still pose serious threats to the powerhouses in the under-19 tournament.

"But in the previous seven championships, the winners usually came from either China or Korea," Mimi, who is also a senior executive at the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI), said.

"The two countries appear so advanced in their development programs."

Last year, China took six of seven titles in the Asian Junior Championship, with the Korean boys' doubles pair keeping them from a clean sweep.

Mimi recognized that Indonesia still had a way to go to compete for the trophies.

"We are only a dark horse because we are not in a good period of development."

PBSI selected a new batch of young shuttlers for admission to the National Training Center earlier this year, but its training program has yet to produce top juniors.

There will be 18 countries represented in the boys' team contest and 12 in the girls' team event, held from Monday to Wednesday.

Shuttlers from 20 countries will then play in the individual event from Wednesday to Sunday.

It is Indonesia's debut as host of the Asian Badminton Junior Championship, in which today's top athletes, including Soni Dwi Kuncoro of Indonesia, men's world number one Lin Dan, Cheng Hong and 2004 Olympic gold medalist Zhang Ning of China, once competed.

"Many newcomers will compete in the championship, although some are back to defend their titles," she said.