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BADMINTON ASSOCIATION OF ZIMBABWE
THREE-IN-ONE EVENT
5 JUNE 2021, STANDARD CHARTERED SPORT CLUB

• RETURN TO BADMINTON POST COVID-19
• AIR- BADMINTON LAUNCH
• NIPPON BADMINTON EQUIPMENT DONATION HANDOVER CEREMONY

The 5th of June 2021 was a great day for the Zimbabwe Badminton family as the Badminton Association of Zimbabwe (BAZ) put together a three-in-one event to celebrate the much-anticipated return of badminton. The events saw also the launch of the new game Airbadminton. And as part of these events, a handover ceremony of equipment donated by the Badminton Association of Japan – NIPPON BA was held with the Ambassador of Japan to Zimbabwe himself doing the handover. The event was graced by highly esteemed delegates,

His Excellency Satoshi Tanaka the Ambassador of Japan to Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee (ZOC) President, Mr Thabani Gonye and the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) Acting Director-General, Mr Garikai Sebastian. The Deputy Minister of Sport, Recreation and Culture was held up on state business on the day and eventually was an apology.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) Council member who is also the Badminton Confederation Africa Treasurer, Zimbabwe Olympic Committee board member, and Badminton Association of Zimbabwe President Mrs Chipo Zumburani and many others were part of the event.

RETURN TO BADMINTON POST COVID-19

The return to badminton event brought joy to the badminton community. Many activities were done on the day to bring all badminton stakeholders together. Over 100 people took part in activities of the day which was also live-streamed for the benefit of those who could not travel to the capital due to COVID-19 restrictions among other reasons. Zimbabwe’s top athletes and top Para badminton athletes displayed the game to the invited guests using the donated equipment – to show that equipment was much needed support to
make the badminton, airbadminton and all other badminton programmes successful and sustainable in the country.

AIR-BADMINTON

The Badminton Association of Zimbabwe successfully launch the new outdoor game AIR-BADMINTON on the day. The outdoors proved to be great place to start the resumption of badminton after the lockdowns. It made social distancing easier and gave enough room for the participants to take off their face coverings for a little bit. It was a fun-filled event, and to make it a truly fun outdoor event, participants enjoyed, in addition to the healthy food and fruits – a lollipop and some ice cream. It certainly brought out the kid in every participant. And above all, the airshuttle did not disappoint

Air-Badminton will allow us to fulfil our overall objective of putting a badminton racket in the hands of as many people as possible – young and old. Air-Badminton is an ambitious new development project, designed to create opportunities for people of all ages and the ability to play badminton on hard, grass, and sand surfaces in parks, gardens, streets and playgrounds.

HAND OVER CEREMONY OF DONATED EQUIPMENT
Japanese Badminton Association donated 80 rackets to the Badminton Association of Zimbabwe (BAZ) to help improve the sport in the country. The Japan Ambassador to Zimbabwe, His Excellency Satoshi Tanaka said the initiative paved the way for the familiarisation of badminton in Zimbabwe. “As part of the ‘Sport for Tomorrow’, which is an international contribution through sports initiative by Japan, toward the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Japan Badminton Association has decided to provide 80 badminton rackets to the Badminton Association of Zimbabwe. This equipment has come at a great time as the BAZ is set to resume badminton activities in the country.

*From left to right – SRC Acting Director General Mr Garikai Sebastian, BAZ President Ms Chipo Zumburani, ZOC Presiddent Mr Thabani Gonye and the Guest of Honour – His Excellency Satoshi Tanaka

In addition to being live-streamed, the event received a lot of coverage on radio, in the press as well as on social media. Follow the links below to view some of these.

https://www.newsday.co.zw/2021/06/japan-donates-80-badminton-rackets-to-zim-association/
https://sportrecs.com/video/frnPtMAcTxNKGk004lBUCg

 

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