Hundreds of shuttlers join junior tourney

JAKARTA (JP): A total of 822 junior shuttlers from 12 countries have confirmed their participation in the Bumiputera Open Badminton Championships scheduled to run from July 1 to July 7 at Senayan Badminton Hall.

The players will come from Denmark, Malaysia, Taiwan, Barbados, Brunei Darussalam, Japan, Wales, Singapore, Nigeria, India, Sri Lanka and host Indonesia, Juniarto Suhandinata, executive director of the Jakarta badminton governing body said here yesterday.

"We are still waiting for South Korea's confirmation," Juniarto said. He added that another badminton powerhouse, China, had been invited, but declined, citing important domestic competitions which are being held at roughly the same time.

A clutch of English and Swedish players also won't be able to make it, said Juniarto.

The championships, with a total of Rp 30 million (US$13,000) in prize money, will feature three age groups: under 15, 15 to 18, and over 18. Foreign players, however, will only be allowed to compete in the second category.

The pair of Deyana Lomban and Indarti Isolina, Marleve Mainaky, George Rimardi, Cindana will highlight the over-18 event in the week-long tournament.

The annual championships were inaugurated in 1986 as the "Jakarta Open Badminton Championships". A year later the widely- diversified Bimantara Group started sponsoring the tournament and it was renamed the "Bimantara World Junior Badminton Championships".

In 1992, the International Badminton Federation (IBF) adopted the championships as the official world junior badminton championships and took over the management of the tournament.

As a result, Bimantara lost the right to use the label of "world junior badminton championships". When the Jakarta Open was reinstated in 1993, no foreign shuttlers took part.

Last year, PT Asuransi Bumiputera, an insurance company, agreed to sponsor the Jakarta Open, and foreign shuttlers from five countries entered.

"Starting this year, the tournament is sanctioned by the IBF," Juniarto said.

The organizers decided that the championships should be brought forward four months from their usual date around the beginning of November so that they do not conflict with the world junior badminton championships due in Silkeborg, Denmark, this October. (arf)