Theo Plasschaert
Haarlem
The Russian badminton star Natalia Perminova can play with her club Drop Shot in the two semi-final matches against Duinwijck.
It was unclear whether the Russian (30) living in Antwerp would be affected by the boycott of Russian athletes.
A statement from badminton Netherlands now provides the necessary clarity. The association naturally follows the positions of the IOC and the world badminton association BWF, says association chairman Jan Helmond. “This mainly concerns international events where Russian and Belarusian athletes compete under the flag of their countries. The competitions and tournaments organized by us (including at clubs) fall under national events and we will not exclude individual athletes from them. NOC NSF indicates, when asked, that it sees no obstacles in this with current knowledge.”
Dupe
From the outset, Duinwijck took the position that individual athletes should not be the victims of the situation. Opponent Drop Shot is of course also pleased with the statement: ,,Natalia is a fully-fledged and valued player in our selection”, the club said in a response.
In mid-April Badminton Europe organizes the Dutch International tournament in Wateringen. It is not yet clear what measures the union will take towards any Russian participants.
cup competition
Badminton Netherlands is not holding a cup competition for the third year in a row.
The after-effects of corona are again the cause. The association prefers an orderly completion of the regular competition this spring, including promotion/relegation in all nine divisions.
Due to corona, the competition is now six weeks behind the established schedule and all available play dates and halls are now needed for the correct completion of the national competition.
