Ontario Badminton Association

High Performance Report

2007 – 2008 Season

1. Canada Winter Games 2011

Selection Process

As we do not have a full time coach dedicated to this program, it seems that the only way to ensure that the selection process is objective and transparent is to hold a selection trial which considers all events in the selection of the team. Determining the full ranking order in each event and awarding points to each player based on their ranking is very objective and transparent. Players must play in a minimum of two events but could play all three. The points accumulated in your best two events determined your point total. Players with the best point totals are selected to the team. The alternates would be selected for each gender as well. This process was used to select the team for 2007 and it worked quite well. I suggest we follow the same format for 2011.

Change in Age Requirements

The Canada Winter Games council is waiting for feedback from Badminton Canada before it decides to change the age requirements. It seems that they would like it changed to U19 as part of LTAD, however Badminton Canada does not want to go to this young an age requirement and is purposing a different LTAD model. Once this has been decided OBA will publish the decision and react accordingly.

Goals

Our goal for the 2011 CWG’s in Nova Scotia will be to win a medal in the Team event and four individual event medals.

2. National Elite Training Centre – RA Centre Ottawa

Although Badminton Canada threatened to withdraw funding for National Elite Training centres last season, they did provide funding. They also provided some funding for potential Olympic qualifiers. This was to financially assist them because the cost of maintaining a high world ranking is becoming very expensive. Most of the potential Olympic athletes are competing outside the country in an attempt to qualify for the Olympics and would therefore not be at the training centres. Based on this rational, Badminton Canada has decided to cancel the existing high performance centres and have them reapply based on a new criteria. This new criteria has not been communicated to the Provincial associations at this time.

OBA is looking into a new strategy for our HP center. Our main issues are financial and resources such as good affordable facilities and coaching.

3. HP Training Camps

There were two HP training camps held in Ontario this summer. The RA Centre had a one week camp held July 28^th to August 2^nd just prior to the RA Summer Open tournament. The camp was well attended with about 7 HP players and 10 developmental players. The head coach was Kyle Hunter, he was assisted by Doris Piche and Lance Hunter and he had some of the top players from the NETC including Mike Beres and Valerie St Jacques to spar with the participants. The camp was very successful as show by results of the RA Summer Open tournament in which camp participants Tommy McKee and Joseph Rogers won the Mens Doubles and Peter Butler made the semi finals of the Mens Singles.

The second camp was held August 13^th to 17^th, 2007 at the Ridges Badminton Club. This camp was conducted by Japan Badminton Federation Technical Development Instructors, Mr. Yoshitaka Iino and professor Hirota with the assistance of Mr. Kanno. Yoshitaka Iino competed internationally from 1974 to 1982. He was four times Japanese national mens doubles champion, 1977 Canadian Open mens doubles champion, 1979 Danish Open mens doubles champion, and a semi finalist in the 1979 All England mens doubles. He and professor Hirota have conducted 17 clinics for coaches since 1999 with over 1200 participants. Together they have published instructor books, produced a DVD on becoming a better player and made a junior development program for Japanese television. Four Japanese players also attended this camp. The camp provided participants with an opportunity to improve their badminton using techniques that have raised the level of badminton skills in Japan to the international level. Shots and drills were analyzed and presented using PowerPoint slides, explanations of why the shot was effective and demonstrations of it being used by international players on video. The shot was then practiced in drills. The camp covered improving footwork, speed, flexibility and stamina. This was an excellent camp and will be offered at the Ridges Badminton Club by the same group of coaches again next year. The OBA will require that Developmental level Quest for Gold Athletes make this part of their training program and will highly recommend top Junior HP players attend as well. This camp will be held during August 11^th – 15^th this summer.

4. Ontario Results at Nationals in 2007

Ontario players won or shared in winning a total of 10 National titles, 1 Senior, 1 University, 2 Under 23, 2 Under 19 and 2 Under 16. They are listed as follows:

Mens Doubles - Mike Beres

National University Mens Doubles Tommy McKee

U 23 Womens Singles – Jocelyn Ko

U 23 Womens Doubles - Jocelyn Ko

U19 Boys Singles - Andrew Tai Pow

U19 Girls Singles - Michelle Li

U16 Boys Doubles - Nyl Yakura

U16 Girls Doubles - Tracy Wong

U14 Mixed Doubles - Joshua Hurlburt Yu

U14 Mixed Doubles - Quifei Chen

5. Ontario Medal Results at International Championships in 2007/2008

2007 Pan American Championships

Mens Singles – Stephan Wojcikiewicz

Mens Doubles – Mike Beres

Womens Doubles - Fiona McKee and Charmaine Reid

Team Event – Gold Mike Beres, Andrew Dabeka, Charmaine Reid and Fiona McKee

2007 Pan Am Games

Mens Singles – Gold Mike Beres

Mens Doubles – Gold Mike Beres

Mens Mixed - Gold Mike Beres

Womens Singles – Silver Charmaine Reid

Womens Doubles – Silver Fiona McKee and Charmaine Reid

2007 Canadian Open (Saskatoon)

Mens Doubles – Gold Mike Beres

Mixed Doubles – Silver Mike Beres

2008 Romanian Open Championships

Womens Doubles - Bronze Fiona McKee and Charmaine Reid

2008 Canadian Open Championships (Montreal)

Womens Singles - Bronze Michelle Li

2008 Regional Thomas Cup Gold

Team - Mike Beres, Andrew Dabeka and Stephan Wojcikiewicz

2008 Regional Uber Cup Silver

Team - Charmaine Reid, Fiona McKee, Michelle Li

6. Ontario Athlete Assistance Program (Quest For Gold)

The Quest for Gold lottery run by the Ontario Lottery Corporation on behalf of the Ministry of Health Promotion funds the Ontario Athletes Assistance Program (OAAP). This is focused on our High Performance Athletes who are working to represent Ontario at National and International competitions. These Ontario athletes had not received provincial funding in the last 15 years until the first round of funding was made available in February of 2006. The role of the OBA is to direct this funding to Ontario athletes who are working towards or are achieving this objective. Funding for the calendar year 2007 went to the following athletes:

Mike Beres Charmaine Reid

Joseph Rogers Caroline Cheung

Peter Butler Cara Cheung

Tommy McKee Michelle Li

Andrew Tai Pow Alex Bruce

Nationally carded athletes who also receive OAAP funding were:

Stephan Wojcikiewicz

Andrew Dabeka

Fiona McKee

Details of the selection criteria can be found on the OBA website.

8. 2007 – 2008 Proposed High Performance Budget

2007 – 2008 Proposed High Performance Program Budget

Date	Event/Item	Budget	Expenses
July 2007	1^st HP Training Camp Ottawa	$2000	$1230
Aug. 2007	2^nd HP Training Camp Ridges	$5000	$2000
Dec. 2007	Hariwan Training Camps	$0	$2000
May 2007 – April 2008	NETC Ottawa	$3500	$3500
Total		$10500	$8730

Jamie McKee, High Performance Director