Organizers expect China to show up at Indonesia Open
Organizers expect China to show up at Indonesia Open
Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Organizers of the 2002 Sanyo Indonesia Open badminton
championships said they were confident one of the sport's
powerhouses, China, would be sending its strongest team to the
event after an absence of several years.
The Chinese team pulled out at the last minute from last
year's event, causing major disappointment among participants.
"The Chinese team, led by Chinese head coach Li Yongbo, has
submitted its entries (for the tournament)," the vice chairman of
the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI), Indra
Kartasasmita, said on Wednesday.
"But I cannot give any guarantees that they will not pull out
like they did last year.
"The Chinese players will arrive here after taking part in the
Singapore Open, which ends on Aug. 25," he said during a media
conference at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Central Jakarta.
The 2002 Indonesia Open will be held in Surabaya's Kertajaya
Basketball Hall from Aug. 28 until Sept. 1. The qualifying round
will take place on Aug. 26 and Aug. 27.
Also present at the conference were representatives of the
event's sponsors and two of last year's champions: men's singles
shuttler Marlev Mainaky and men's doubles shuttler Candra Wijaya.
According to the list of participants it submitted, China will
be fielding its top players at the event, including Xia Xuanxe,
Lin Dan and Bao Chunlai in the men's singles. In the women's
singles, the country plans to send Zhou Mi, Zhang Ning, Dai Yun,
Gong Ruina and Xie Xinfang.
Seven other countries have also confirmed their participation
at the five-star, US$170,000 event.
"These countries are Denmark, Finland, Japan, the Netherlands,
Slovenia, the U.S. and Wales," said Indra, who is responsible for
international relations and developmental affairs at PBSI.
"Meanwhile, Chinese Taipei, India and South Korea have
informed us they will be participating but have yet to submit
their official line-ups," he said.
Registration for the event closes on Aug. 14.
Denmark will be relying on, among other players, All England
women's singles champion Camilla Martin and Michael Soogard in
the men's division.
The Netherlands will send its Uber Cup shuttlers, who made
history by becoming the first team from that country to make it
the semifinals, pulling off the feat in Guangzhou, China, in May.
The Dutch women include Indonesian-born Mia Audina Tjiptawan,
Karina de Witt and Judith Meulendijks.
At the event, PBSI will field all 80 of its shuttlers training
at the Indonesian Badminton Center in Cipayung, East Jakarta.
Candra said he was confident of defending his title, but
Marlev said the event would have a different flavor this year
because it would use the old best-of-three, 15-point scoring
system.