Badminton --- For the Young and Old Alike?

Badminton --- For the Young and Old Alike?

- Sol Acosta

Badminton for the oldies?  The uninitiated would be quick to caution people in their 50’s from playing the game.  “If you must, play with people your own age”, they will advise.  I have been playing badminton for about 15 years now.  While this may be no big deal to the average reader, I’m proud of the fact that as a senior citizen now, I still indulge in the sport, and I still look forward to each playing day like any 12-year old kid so enthused and excited to wield a racket at every opportunity.

 

But this is not about how or why I play, nor how the level of my play may have changed over the years.  Suffice it to say that I have had the privilege of playing with young and not-so-young aficionados.  I have observed all sorts of playing styles, forms and attitudes that make for an interesting athletic satire.  Interestingly, this can serve as a guide to better help one understand and appreciate winning the game, either physically or psychologically.  Mark the following “differences” between “seniors” like us, and the youth like “them”:

 

(a)     Younger players wonder why it takes us forever to limber up/warm up; seniors feel at utmost ease doing so, even engaging in much light talk while doing stretches

(b)     Younger ones are generally quite particular about partnerships (in doubles play); seniors, with the exception of a few competitive ones, welcome playing with anyone and everyone, abilities notwithstanding

(c)     Younger ones usually like to play strong, hard and fast games (“hatawan”); seniors compensate for their relative lack of strength with “placing” shots, coupled with an array of “faking” motions and heaving sounds

(d)     Younger ones score their points silently, requiring only intermittent affirmations; seniors need to hear the scoring said loudly and repeatedly

(e)     When playing against the seniors, younger ones respect your calls (“in” or “out”); seniors generally have the propensity to question such calls by their opponents

(f)       And of course, younger ones move with agility; seniors “take their sweet time” picking the shuttlecock, taking their service stance, and generally move about the court with relative calm and “ease”

 

There may be much more to say about how the generation gap manifests itself in the court, but the whole point of this piece is to share how I have personally learned to type-cast players, found it easy to cope with behavior/actuations that could sometimes be irritating to others, and have managed to play enjoyably with the young and old alike.  Knowing the idiosyncrasies of players according to such generational gaps, I believe, helps one to play badminton in a wholesome way…..understanding opponents and enjoying the game without the weight of impatience or irritation.  

 

The 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Philippines National Open Badminton Championships is presented by YONEX-SUNRISE and co-presented by PHITEN.  This event is also brought to us by:  Badminton Hub, Sportshub, My Shaldan, Makati Shangri-la, BSI Medicated Spray, Fish Designs, Potraitme.net, Tacorific, Potato Corner and our official & exclusive print partner, The Philippine Star.    The tournament runs from Nov 22-30, 2008

 

(Editors Note:   At 60 years old, Sol Acosta continues to play badminton 2-3 times a week.   She is a proud mother of 2 children, Migs and Mawi, both of whom continuing to excel in Corporate Badminton)