Li Ning 2009 Sudirman Cup - Why is it significant to Team Phils?

Li Ning 2009 Sudirman Cup - Why is it significant to Team Phils?
- Dan Rupinta

First held in 1989 and consequently, being held bi annually, The Sudirman Cup is the only international badminton competition that does not stage a qualification round. The competing teams are divided into groups based on their past Sudirman Cup performances. For this year's edition, there have been 4 main groups while each group has 2 subgroups (or a total of 8 groups).

I don't recall any previous participation of the Philippines in past Sudirman Cups (at least for the past 10 yrs). With no prior Sudirman Cup record, Philippines has been bracketed in Group 4a.

This essentially works like Tennis' Davis Cup or Fed Cup. Only teams in Group 1 will have a chance to lift the trophy as the teams in other groups fight for "promotion". The teams who finish last in the group will be relegated to the lower group, except the final group.

Group 1 - 8 teams (The elite group - composed of Malaysia, Denmark, Korea, HK, Indonesia, China, Japan & England)
Group 2 - 8 teams
Group 3 - 8 teams
Gropu 4 - 10 teams (2 sub-groups). Top of Group 4a and 4b will have a "play off" on May15. The wiinner will be promoted to Group 3 in the next Sudirman Cup.

The best possible achievement for Team Philippines will be to top Group 4a and then defeat the top team in Group 4b on the May 15 "playoff" in order to be elevated to Group 3 in 2011. {As of this writing, Phils defeated South Africa in May 10 (4-1) and Luxembourg in May 12 (4-1). It succumbed to Switzerland in May 11 (1-4)}

For me, our participation, by itself, has been a milestone. For the first time in a decade or even more, Philippines was able to form a team on its own. It absolutely feels good to see competing badminton camps in the country playing together as one unified Philippines team (at least in the perception department).P

hilippine badminton is still fragmented today but the Sudirman Cup will be remembered as one bold step for the advancement of a solid & unified Philippine team. This is why it has elicited so much enthusiasm in me and to many people

Li Ning Sudirman Cup Update (May 12): Philippines def. Luxembourg , 4-1

Li Ning Sudirman Cup Update (May 12): Philippines vs. Luxembourg
Philippines won: 4-1

Kennevic Asuncion & Kennie Asuncion def. Hengen/Schroeder: 21-10, 21-7
Antonino Gadi def. Speltz: 21-3, 21-7
Paul Jefferson Vivas & Ronel Estanislao def. Michels/Mellers: 21-5, 21-13
Barnig def. Malvinne Anne Alcala: 21-15, 15-21, 21-19
Karyn Cecilia Velez & Gelita Castilo def. Schroeder/Weides: 21-9, 21-15

Li Ning Sudirman Cup Update (May 11, 2009): Switzerland def. The Philippines, 4-1

2009 Li Ning Sudirman Cup Update (May 11, 2009)

Subgroup 4a: Philippines vs. Switzerland. Switzerland won 4-1

Mixed Doubles: Kennevic & Kennie Asuncion def. Dumartheray/Jacquet: 21-6, 21-12
Men's Singles: Boesiger def. Mark Natividad, 21-18, 21-13
Men's Doubles: Boesiger/Dunartheray def. Andrei Babad/Antonino Gadi: 16-21, 22-20, 22-20
Ladies Singles: Cicognini def. Gelita Castilo: 21-14, 21-13
Ladies Doubles: Cicognini/Jaquet def. Karyn Velez/Malvinne Alcala: 21-10, 21-11.

Up next: Phils vs. Luxembourg on May 12, 2009

Li Ning Sudirman Cup Update (May 10, 2009): Phils def. Rep. of South Africa (RSA), 4-1

2009 Li Ning Sudirman Cup Update (May 10, 2009): Philippines vs. Republic of South Africa (RSA)

Subgroup 4a: Philippines vs. Republic of South Africa (Phils Won 4-1). Mabuhay ang Filipinas!

Mixed Doubles: Kennevic & Kennie Asuncion def. James & Viljoen (Rep. of South Africa): 21-13, 21-14
Men's Singles: Antonino Gadi def. Maliekal (RSA): 21-12, 21-6
Men's Doubles: Dednam/Dednam def. Paul Jefferson Vivas & Ronel Estanislao: 21-17, 21-12
Ladies Singles: Malvinne Anne Alcala def. Doubell: 21-8, 21-17
Ladies Doubles: Karyn Cecilia Velez & Gelita Castilo def. Edwards/Viljoen: 21-13, 24-22

It feels good to see a Phils team composed of the the country's best shuttlers.

Good Luck to the Phils Team in the "Li Ning 2009 Sudirman Cup"

- The 2009 Sudirman Cup (World Mixed Team Badminton Championships) will be held in the Guangzhou Gymnasium of Guangzhou, China from May 10 to May 17, 2009. This Mixed Team event is being held every two years.

- Team Philippines has been bracketed with Switzerland, South Africa, Luxembourg and Turkey in Subgroup 4A. Team Phils will kick-off its campaign on Sunday, May 10, 2009 vs. South Africa.

- The Philippines Team is composed of the following:
Alcala, Malvinne Anne
Asuncion, Kennevic
Asuncion, Kennie
Babad, Andrei
Castilo, Gelita
Estanislao, Ronel
Natividad, Mark
Gadi, Antonino
Velez, Karyn
Vivas, Paul Jefferson

Coach Nelson Asuncion is also currently in Guangzhou to support the team.

- This is the first time that we are seeing a solid team composed of experienced Phils team members like Vic and Kennie together with young and upcoming stars like Alcala, Castilo, Velez and Gadi. This is truly a good sign for Philippine Badminton. Hopefully , this will be the start of a unified Phils team!

- In behalf of the Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open Badminton Championships Organizing Committee, all the best to the Phils team, many of which are the reigning champions in the Open categories of The 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open Badminton Championships

Kennevic and Kennie Asuncion - Mixed Doubles Champion, 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open
Ronel Estanislao & Malvinne Anne Alcala - Silver Medallist Mixed Doubles, 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open
Gelita Castilo - Ladies Singles Champion, 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open
Malvinne Anne Alcala - Silver Medallist Ladies Singles, 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open
Kennie Asuncion & Karyn Velez - Ladies Doubles Champion, 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open
Antonino Gadi - Mens Singles Champion, 2008 Yonex-Sunrise Phils Nat'l Open

- Past Champions in the Sudirman Cup are:
China - 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2005 and 2007
Korea - 1991, 1993, 2003
Indonesia - 1989

Acosta wins Fifth Title; Amores completes "Hat-trick"

The 7th All-Citi Badminton Tournament, 2009 Edition Tournament Recap
Acosta wins Fifth Title; Amores completes "Hat-trick"

Jojo Amores completed his own “hat-trick” (3 titles) while Migs Acosta snared his fifth All-Citi A1 title to become the first pairing to win back-back championship crowns in the 7th annual All-Citi Badminton tournament held last April 25-26, 2009 at the YPBC, Shaw Blvd, Mandaluyong City. Amores and Acosta, representing the Violet team defeated the tandem of Jon Chua and Louie Bonzon (Yellow team), 20-18, 21-16 in a hotly-contested Level A1 Finals. Acosta, who now holds a 5-0 record in the annual All-Citi finals said: “We were just lucky enough to capitalize on breaks that we got during the latter part of both sets. All four of us played well and it was a hard fought match that could have gone either way”.

The pairing of Acosta and Amores appeared to be vulnerable in their preliminaries matches as they succumbed to Chua and Bonzon in a tight 3 sets, 14-21, 21-16, 21-17. Meanwhile the eventual runners-up sent strong signals early on to their opponents by sweeping the preliminary assignments in dominating fashion, using their athleticism and uncanny teamwork. However, there was a reversal of roles in the Finals as Chua and Bonzon appeared tentative with their shots and committed more unforced errors. The crucial point in the match came at 17-16 in the 2nd set when Acosta, showcasing his experience, scored two consecutive points with powerful smashes into the middle of the court. At championship point, Bonzon’s defensive block caught the top of the net and sealed Amores' & Acosta’s victory. This was the second runner-up finish for Bonzon and Chua in 3 years.

In the Level A2 category, Erwin Amurao of Citiphone (partnering with Oliver Pangan this year) successfully defended his championship crown by outclassing the pairing of Kailas Raina (CBPS) and Alana Olavides (CRMS CoE) in straight sets. Raina played as a substitute player for Michelle Guerrero who withdrew from the level A2 finals with a back injury. Earlier in the afternoon, Raina partnered with Mawi Acosta to capture the Level B1 trophy. In Ladies Doubles Level A3, Citi Team A standouts, Kathleen Ng and Jheng Galang ended the amazing run of the Ramos sisters (Rachel and Reana) in 2 straight sets to bag the Level A3 crown for the first time.

The B3, B4 and B9 categories also provided a lot of excitement as the finals matches all stretched to 3 hard-fought sets. Basketball standout, George Monsod, ably proved his mettle in his second sport by garnering the B4 crown with partner, Dama Cid.

“One Citi”. It was another well-participated badminton tournament with a total of 170 players coming from the different businesses and departments from the various legal vehicles comprising Citi Philippines joining the event. Truly the event has lived up to its objective of promoting camaraderie, work-life balance, and a healthy lifestyle among Citi employees.

It was a reunion of sorts this year with the inclusion of Ex-Citibankers into the tournament. At least 20 former Citibankers joined the 2-day tournament and quite a few of them emerged victorious, among them - Oliver Pangan (A2), Mawi Acosta (B1), Eric Salamillas & Renee Carpio (B7), Janet Ching (B8) and Esther Sta. Maria (C2). “As an Ex-Citi staff, we surely appreciate being able to attend an event like this where we can meet up with old friends and meet new ones”, Level B6 Runner-up and former Corporate Bank Relationship Mgr, Jehan Dayrit remarked.

The tournament kicked-off with the Opening Ceremonies highlighted by the presentation of the 5 participating teams. It was followed by the singing of the Philippine National Anthem led by Level A2 champion, Mr. Oliver Pangan. The Opening prayer and Opening remarks, delivered by Nona Reyes and Dan Rupinta, followed shortly after. Jojo Amores and Nona Reyes then led the participating players in the Oath of Sportsmanship

Big battle for team championships. If there’s one indication on how competitive the games were during the 2-day tournament, it was definitely the battle for team supremacy. During the two-day tournament, leadership in the team standings changed 5 times and after all the Preliminary matches were tallied, there was a triple tie for first place (Violet, Red and Yellow teams) while the Blue and White teams had identical team points to tie for 4th and 5th places. The over-all championship was decided via the Finals matches and the Yellow team of Mr. Jonas Baradas only edged out the Red Team of Mr. Bobby Colores by a mere 2 points. It was a very successful weekend for Baradas, as he and partner Mike Ramos also copped the C1 championship

Enhorabuena Organizers!. The tournament is currently one of the longest running Corporate Badminton tournaments in the country today. Special thanks to the hard working Core Group members who once again, through team effort produced a top-calibre tournament. Congratulations and well done indeed!
Tournament Organizing Committee: Alejandro, Jeff; Baga, Lynneth; Bautista, Darius B; Catani, Amie F; Dayrit, Dindo; Galang, Josephine; Guerrero, Michelle; Mabanag, Ronald; Olavides, Alana; Ramos, Rachel Erika; Ramos, Reana Evita; Reyes, Nona; Sia, Jerwin M

Tournament Captains and Co-captains: Jonas Baradas & Mike Ramos, Bobby Colores & Edgar Matacot, Jun Macabasco & Jojo Amores, Rigor Roxas & Wilbur Po and Joel Calo & Erwin Amurao.

And to the Core Group heads: Dan Rupinta and Dindo Dayrit.

Kudos also to the Citi Camera Club, under the able stewardship of Pres. Winston Baltasar of CBS Asia for their support in the Badminton photo contest.

See you all in next year's 8th edition of the tournament