Dear readers
It has been a busy week end for me.
An-Yu Badminton Academy had it's 5th Annual Junior Badminton tournament. This is a chance for many of Yuli's students to see how they have improved as they compete against each other. This year, there were a few players competing who are not Yuli's students.
It is always good to have external competitors as Yuli's students can assess their standar against others.
There were over 50 players competing in the tournament.
Many of the players have been training with Yuli for at least a couple of years.
It was good to see how the young players have improved so much under Yuli's coaching.
Many of Yuli's players have of course progressed to representing WA and even Australia. It is a testament to Yuli's love of badminton and her passion for coaching plus her love for her adopted country.
I have loved supporting Yuli as I have seen how she cares for her students and encourages and nutures them as a coach. The support to Yuli extends to the support of my wife and my 2 boys for the An Yu Badminton Academy and the children there.
I have seen the young ones growing up being more confident in their skills and also as young persons.
I have seen the players becoming state and national players through their hard work and through the guidance of Yuli.
Many of the junior players will have their paths ahead laid out for them with guidance from Yuli.
Let's look at the winners of the tournament yesterday.
Under 11 Singles:
1st: Zhi Ron Tan . He managed to beat Seryna Xiao in 2 sets. Zhi Ron is young and has great parental support. We hope he continues his badminton journey and will likely represent WA when he gets older.
2nd : Seryna Xiao. She has been playing badminton with her parents for a few years. I have seen her improving strongly and she will be a pillar for WA's state team when she gets older. She fought valiantly but was unable to win stronger Zhi Ron.
3rd: Alex Li: Alex also has supportive parents and will grow to be a good player. He however needs to learn disclipline. He can be a future star if he starts to focus.
Under 11's doubles
1st: Zhi Ron Tan and Alex Li: Yes, they were too strong for the rest of the challengers. I could hear both sets of parents encouraging them. Good on them. May their partnership bring them to greater glory.
2nd: Dale Cunningham and Kaden Griffiin. Kaden is young and Dale is also young. They show great promise and potential. As they grow bigger, they will be a force to reckon with.
3rd: Aaisha Gill and Jugray Singh. These 2 players have just started and will improve substantially.
Under 15s singles
Boys
1st. Julian Lee: Julian was in the WA Under 15s state team but did not have much chance to play for WA in the team event. However, he has to know he has the skills needed to propel him to future badminton greatness. He has to believe in himself. He fought hard in a 3 setter to beat Dawson. Good luck in his badminton journey. His parents are always supportive and we wish the family well.
2nd: Dawson Lawrence: Dawson is young but I can see the fire in his eyes. He has great potential. He was in the 2nd WA team but I can see that his skills have improved so much that he will fare well in future state teams.
3rd: Timothy Sentosa: This is another rising star. He was in the WA 2nd team and will progress next year as he can play in the Under 15s.
Under 15s Doubles:
1st: Matthew Cunningham and Jia Ding Loo. This 2 boys did well did well and will continue to grow stronger.
2nd: Zhan Dian Eing and Natasha Wee. Both players have improved so much and will continue to get stronger.
3rd: Justin Lim and Timothy Sentosa. Again , young players who will get stronger and better.
Over 15s
Girls:
1st : Bella Liu: What can we say. She is our strongest girl player in WA. Hopefully she will play for WA in the next tournament.
2nd : Janice Tan: She continues to improve and push herself. Her parents are so supportive. She will have the chance to prove herself in the next national tournament.
3rd: Bernice Teoh: Dear hardworking Bernice. She has grown so much and is now taller than her mum. She was ranked 2nd nationally. Her work ethics will bring her closer to becoming Australia's no. 1 in her age group.
Girls doubles:
1st. Janice Tan and Angie Yang. There is no doubt that Angie is one of our best WA doubles player. Janice and her were no match for the other teams.
2nd: Bella Liu and Joanne Zheng: No need to say any more about Bella. However, Joanne is another rising WA star. She has given so much for WA. She will prove herself as a force to be reckoned with in all national tournaments.
3rd: Katrina Garing and Bernice Teoh. These 2 young ladies will continue to bring WA state teams glory.
Over 15s Boys singles
1st Jason Lee: Jason who always brings a smile to my face as he is such a great kid. Always polite and obliging. He has so much skills and continues to improve. He fought had for his 3 setter win against Milain. By the end of the game he was on the floor.
2nd: Milain Ranasinghle: Milain has been missing from the badminton circuit concentrating on his studies. He turns up with a beard!!!. They are all growing up.
3rd: Jasper Tan: I saw Jasper giving his all and telling me, Uncle, I am out of shape. Jasper is concentrating on his studies but will definitely make a mark in the next Under 19s tournament.
Over 15s doubles
1st: Romy Puhalovich and Milain: These 2 boys played well and was no match for the younger teams. Romy has been in a few state teams and will be representing WA again.
2nd: Julian Lee and Hong Yuan Wong. Hong Yuan recently migrated to Perth. He will be a force to be reckoned with in the next few national tournaments.
3rd: Theodore Kang and Jonny Kok. Both boys were in the silver WA Under 15s team. They will be an asset to the Under 17s nationals.
So it was a geat tournament and I could see how excited all the parents were.
I wish all the players a good badminton future.
