Several big names to miss Indonesia Open championship
Several big names to miss Indonesia Open championship
JAKARTA (JP): Malaysian and Chinese big names will miss the
Indonesia Open badminton championships in Yogyakarta next week,
but the organizers are not afraid of a major drop in the
tournament's quality.
Malaysian Thomas Cup squad composed of men's singles Rashid
Sidek, Ong Ewe Hock and Foo Kok Keong and world-rated doubles
players Cheah Soon Kit, Soo Beng Kiang, Yap Kim Hock and Tan Kim
Her has definitely opted to skip the Aug. 10-14 Grand Prix event
as they will compete in the Commonwealth Games in Victoria,
Canada.
The Commonwealth Games will run just three days after the
Yogyakarta tournament which offers a total of US$166,000 in cash
prizes. Malaysia will field a second string team of 20.
The list of major absentees also include Chinese women's
singles defending champion Ye Zhaoying, her male compatriot Asia
Cup champion Dong Jiong. Other famous names who will make no show
are Denmark's top men's singles Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen and ace
doubles specialists Thomas Lund and Jon Holst Christensen.
Most of the players who have opted to miss the Indonesia Open
are starting their World Cup campaign in Ho Chi Minh City today,
with Indonesian shuttlers expected to flex their supremacy.
Secretary general of the Badminton Association of Indonesia
(PBSI), RAJ Gosal, denied during a press meeting yesterday that
some absentees might be disappointed with the treatment they
received during the Thomas Cup and Uber Cup finals here last May.
"They may suffer injuries or not have had enough recovery time
before competing in a bigger event," he said. He admitted that
PBSI did not receive any explanation from the absentees.
Ye claimed her second successive crown here last year by
beating world number one Susi Susanti and denied the host team of
a clean sweep. Junior players will line up a weak Chinese team,
with veteran women's singles Tan Jiuhong being the only familiar
name.
First time
A total of 68 overseas players from 10 countries have
confirmed their entry at the international badminton meet held
for the first time in Yogyakarta, a small town renowned for its
tourist spots.
Host team will parade its triumphant Thomas Cup and Uber Cup
squads and a hundreds of players who will represent their
respective provinces and clubs.
Gosal also denied that the tournament will not lose its
prestige due to the number of non-attenders. "We still have South
Koreans and, of course, Indonesia's world-class players," he
said.
With almost all of top beaters missing from the event, host
shuttlers will likely dominate the 13th edition of the Indonesia
Open. "We have a great chance to produce a clean sweep for the
first time," he said.
The competitions will be contested in the newly completed
Amongraga indoor stadium. Yogyakarta municipal authorities have
donated more than Rp 860 million (US$396,860) from its annual
budget to finish the construction project of the new sport venue.
Local authorities started the project 10 years ago.
All participants are scheduled to arrive by Aug. 8, the date
for the welcome party at Yogyakarta palace hosted by Sri Sultan
Hamengkubuwono X. (amd)