Cuba hosts Thomas, Uber Cups qualifiers

CHELTENHAM, England: The 2002 Thomas and Uber Cup competitions get underway in just over two weeks' time when teams from the Pan-American region battle it out in Havana from Nov. 13-17, the International Badminton Federation (IBF) announced on Monday.

It's the first time since San Jose in 1988 that Pan-America has played host to a Thomas & Uber Cup competition.

Nine nations will contest the event in Havana, with the hope of claiming the one qualifying place up for grabs in each competition. The one lucky team will progress to the semifinal stage in Eindhoven next February.

All teams wishing to enter the 2002 event have the option of starting their campaigns in any of the three preliminary venues - Cuba, Australia and the Netherlands.

In the Thomas Cup men's world team championships, the top seeded United States has been drawn in Group A, alongside host Cuba, Guatemala and Barbados, and with Kevin Han, Howard Bach and Bob Malaythong featuring on the team sheet, is widely tipped to be the team flying to the Netherlands early next year. -- IBF