Smash Hits - Australian Badminton Open spinoffs

Dear Members,

Much of the activities surrounding this month of June was focused on delivering the Australian Badminton Open (ABO) where it had unprecedented media interest, and new volunteer participation. It was a pleasing result for the ABO management team, as it received an overwhelming response to the recruitment process outside of badminton. The volunteers who participated were appreciated and rewarded for their efforts, and our new badminton ‘fans’ are now looking to be retained in future years. Read more on other case studies available on volunteer management - Cycle Club; Ball Kids Program.

A national coaches conference was also held at the Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre, in conjunction with the 2016 XiamenAir Australian Badminton Open. It gave member coaches an opportunity to gain new knowledge, share expertise, and participate in discussions in relation to the development of badminton in Australia. Coaches were assigned to in-class group work and on-court coaching tasks throughout the conference. Although no formal assessments were undertaken, all coaches are eligible to receive 10 coach development points as part of their next re-accreditation period.

All State/Territory Member Associations have been issued with a link to videos and presentations from the conference that should be useful in sharing and communicating with all registered member coaches. Interestingly, we also tested one of the new ways to engage and entertain supporters on social media by sharing our first ever live content from the coaches conference and tournament on the BA and ABO Facebook pages respectively. Get tips here on engaging more participants in sport through social media. Good news also on Shuttle Time...shortly after our last update, BWF released its new website and mobile app. Have a go at using the interactive app by downloading through App Store or Play Store. Australia has also been granted use of a unique country logo for Shuttle Time marketing purposes (featured image of this blog), so please let me know if you wish to utilise it.

The ABO also gave us an opportunity to link the event to Sporting Schools, introduce badminton to 6 new schools, and over 300 school children that have never participated before. It is now school holidays across most of the country but Sporting Schools funding is open for Term 3. Please note, Sporting Schools funding is only available for up to three terms in a school year. To support coaching providers and coaches who are engaging with schools through the Sporting Schools program, the Australian Sports Commission has provided a few preparation tips. Feel free to share this with your coaching provider and coach networks.

Upcoming participation programs and events: Badminton NT is hosting a ‘Come & Try’ for the next month; Badminton VIC is holding a Level 1 Course on 13 July; BA Members’ Sport Participation Agreement updates are due on 15 July.

Regards, Marianne Loh Participation Manager Badminton Australia