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Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Badminton shopping in Japan

Just concluded my shopping for badminton stuff in Tokyo.

I would say, badminton is not a rather popular sports in Tokyo, it's behind tennis and (Japanese) soft tennis.

Prices are similar across many shops. Most major badminton specialty shops can be found near major train stations, like Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ueno etc...

There is also a major sporting shopping area in  (御茶ノ水) Ochanomizu train station where they sell every sports goods under the sun you can find, i.e. golf, skiing, hiking, camping, tennis, etc.

A Mizuno boutique shop that have the complete range of badminton, tennis and soft tennis stuff.

Racquet brands are rather limited, mostly common Japanese brands like Yonex, Gosen, Toalson, Kumpoo and foreign brands like Prince, Wilson and Babolat. Li-Ning is rare and Victor is non-exsistant.

Shoe selections are wide, but as Japanese players have rather small feet, size above 28cm is very difficult to find. Ditto for socks, with size limit up to 28cm.


Badminton bags however are a different story, Tokyo has a good selection of Badminton bags.

Otherwise, customer service is very good.

Prices are fixed and rather high, but the good thing about Japanese products is quality; you get what you pay for!

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Conclusion of Badminton 2012

The year 2012 of badminton draws to a close with the completion of the BWF Superseries Finals 2012.

The surprise of the day was the win by Danish pair Joachim Fischer Nielsen/Christina Pedersen over the olympic champs (Zhao Yunlei and Zhang Nan) in an exciting rubber game 17-21, 21-12, 21-14.

Another Danish pair of Moe/Mogensen won the men's doubles. The rest were swept by China.

2013 is next...

Friday, November 16, 2012

Lee Chong Wei's Autobiography

I just managed to get a copy of Lee Chong Wei's book, 'Dare to be a Champion'.

Publisher: Bukuganda
ISBN 978-967-10843-2-8

Front book jacket
                                                                    Back book jacket

Review: coming soon...

Sunday, November 4, 2012

How to smash using the Nanoray 800!


 One needs a particular style of play to harness the unique qualities of the Nanoray 800.

Recently, Bodin Issara switched to Nanoray 800 from VTZF.

A 25kg smash won't do it as VTZF doesn't enhanced the sound of the smash.

You need to SHOUT or SCREAM when you smash, the sonic metal will enhance the power of your smash.

That's why Bodin Issara shouts and screams a lot. He can turn a 100km/h smash into a 200+km/h smash. 

 One can also scream after the smash to rub the salt in (after a smash winner that is)...

Friday, October 26, 2012

Badminton version of Harlem Globetrotters



Rexy Mainaky the star of the show entertaining Japanese fans a few years ago.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Denmark Open Finals 2012

The men's doubles was a very entertaining game, except for the 2nd set.

The second set saw Koo and Tan trailed by a wide margin with no hope of catching up. So both sides played nonchalantly to conserve energy.

Instead of fast drives or jumpsmashes, both sides played high clears and even backhand clears.
The offenders were rebuked by the officials.

Here in the 3rd period, Koo and Tan, having poor communications on court based on their body language, scrambles for a loose shuttle to smash.

The Koreans won, arguably by luck. Perhaps they have better tactics and discipline as well.

Here Yoo Yeong Seong of Korea celebrating by dancing Gangnam Style, a popular dance move, which has gone viral in YouTube.


Sunday, October 14, 2012

Badminton philosophy?



A nice philosophical comment (or rant) by coach Lee.

In summary, what you do in court echoes who you do in life.

Respect is important, especially your respecting opponent who give you his/her time and sincere effort to play you.