Tennis and padel, two racket sports, have experienced a huge boom in recent years, especially for padel. Badminton, another racket sport, is not left out.
A revival has struck this sport which had nevertheless experienced dark times.
“A decline was already evident before Covid and this was accentuated during this periodconfides Michel Picalausa, operational director at the Francophone Badminton League. But there has been a wind of change over the past year, we feel a lot of interest with the creation of 4 clubs in the province, which brings the total to 18 now. It doesn’t seem like much, but we’re happy with the enthusiasm.“
Especially since many young people have taken up badminton since 44% of players are under 18 years old.
“A percentage higher than the average in other provinces, that’s excellent news “, continues Michel Picalausa.
A new provincial mixed series
A meeting between Luxembourg clubs and the league was also held recently. “We feel a great relationship between the clubs who want to move forward together by helping each other, continues the operational director. There were a lot of discussions on the training of young people, but also on the creation of a mixed provincial championship.“
Because for the moment, only the men’s championship has a provincial division with only clubs from the province of Luxembourg.
The other interclub teams play at district or league level with the other French-speaking provinces.
Bastogne, Marche and Wellin at the top in interclubs
With three teams in the men’s League B (Bastogne A and B; Marche), the second French-speaking level and training in the women’s league (Wellin), Luxembourg badminton is also making its mark at the national level.
The Marche team is currently on the podium just ahead of the first Bastogne team.
Among the women, Wellin is the best Luxembourg team. Aurélie Baijot’s team is currently 5th in Ligue 1, the highest French-speaking level.
This enthusiasm also translates into tournaments
Tournament organizers are also rubbing their hands. The tournaments are stormed, like the one in Léglise in January.
“A new club, a new tournament and there were more than 100 participants, note Michel Picalausa. In Bastogne, everything was sold out in two days whereas usually, registrations are open for three or four weeks. This is especially felt in the lowest rankings of level 10 to 12 where there are also many new players. These tables are filled at breakneck speed and leave less room for others. It’s really nice to see this breath of fresh air and the clubs are delighted with it.”
Certainly, badminton has a bright future ahead of it.
2024-02-28 19:51:00
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