Badminton starts buildup for 2016 Rio Olympics

Manila, Philippines—With A P40-million war chest a year, Philippine badminton is embarking on a long-term campaign to form a “powerhouse team” that will take a crack at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Philippine Badminton Association secretary general Rep. Albee Benitez announced on Thursday the renewed drive to boost the sport in launching the members of the national junior team which he hope would later spearhead the country’s campaign in the next Olympiad.

“When badminton experienced a spike in popularity, the level of competitiveness failed to match it,” Benitez told sportswriters over lunch with members of the national team inside the Philippine Sports Commission’s Badminton Hall. “Now we thought of giving the sport a second life and move forward.”

With funding from top sponsors Bingo Bonanza and Smart Sports, the PBA hired Indonesian Olympic and World champion Rexy Mainaky to mentor the team. He will be assisted by compatriot and Olympian Minarti Timur and several local coaches.

Benitez said the bulk of the budget will go to foreign exposure.

There are 18 members of the national team and 22 in junior, who were culled from across the country and are given free board and lodging and even scholarships.

“I think we are moving in the right direction because this early our neighbors are taking notice already,” added Benitez, referring to the tandem of Jofer Escueta and Ariel Magnaye, who managed to beat Indonesian teams during two international tournaments, including the recent Super Series event of Djarum Indonesia.

The men’s double tandem of Escueta and Magnaye are now ranked 132nd in the world from over 200 three months ago. Benitez said the goal is to put Filipino players in the top 50 by next year. The highest rank held by a Filipino was 11th in mixed double by siblings Kennie and Kennevic Asuncion.

“It’s not just the skill, but the physical fitness and training method. Right now we are following a test that will compute the total physical fitness of the player so we are adding sports science. We are doing all these with the ultimate goal of forming a team that could compete in Rio,” Benitez said.