News

Great news arrived this week with the naming of Renee Flavell, Craig Cooper and John Moody in the NZ Olympic Team. Craig and Renee will be representing NZ in the Mixed Doubles, and John Moody in the mens singles.

Badminton in Beijing should take on a special significance as badminton is a hugely popular sport in China.

The world No.1 man Lin Dan is Chinese and the Chinese national team have just recently won the Thomas and Uber (women) world team championships in Jakarta.

It will be great for badminton in NZ to be able to tune in and follow the results of the NZrs at the games, and this could also inspire more young people to take up the sport.

For the three athletes it is the result of years of hard work. On court to qualify and fine tune their game, and off court raising money to ensure they could reach the qualifying tournaments around the world.

It's a very special time for the families and supporters of the three players. Very few NZ badminton players ever get to experience the Olympic games.

At 25 John is still young in badminton terms, and hopefully will have future Olympics ahead. For him this comes at a great time.

"It's very important, it provides a gauge to measure myself against and hopefully I can build further into 2010 (Commonwealth Games) and 2012 (London Olympics). However the immediate focus is to perform well in Beijing."

"The whole experience is a rare opportunity to learn how other athletes train, prepare and compete as well as a chance to make new friends."

John was at the Commonwealth Games in 2006 however he expects Beijing to be a totally difference experience:

"In 2006 there was always a buzz in the games village but I expect Beijing to be on a higher level again."

"My memory of walking out into the stadium at the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony, was the amount of camera flashes and the noise. I hope I'll get the chance to experience it again."

He sees the Chinese as being the main opposition and already dominant on the world stage. they will be tough to beat at home with "vocal partisan crowds supporting their heroes".

The venue is hard to predict so John is aiming to get some time to hit there prior to the event. Getting used to things such as lighting, wind drift, even the sound of the shuttle can help a great deal in preparing for a match.

John has already had a bit of a response to the news he is in the team: "There has been some media interest which has been nice and I hope a positive for badminton as a sport."

From late in 2007 when Renee and Craig had a rare win over Daniel Shirley and Joanne Quay (ranked 15 in the world), they have gone on to secure some good victories against often higher ranked opposition. They too are a relatively young pair on the world circuit and as with John both will be attending their first Olympic Games.

For Renee the chance to represent NZ means a lot:

"Going to the Olympics is huge for me, it has been my goal since I first started playing. It will not only be amazing to be there competing in badminton, but being part of the NZ team and being able to stay together in the village will be a wicked experience."

Renee and Craig have adjusted their plans as they move from qualifying mode to maximise their preparation for Beijing.

"Our plans have changed slightly. We have now decided not to play the Australian International, as we feel we will benefit more with an intensive training block over the next 2 months, in the lead up to the games. We have also increased our hitting sessions, which on some days involves training 3 times a day."

Renee is not taking anyone lightly "These are the world's best players, so we have to view everyone as tough opposition."

For Renee - who has been working hard to qualify for some time - the reality has not quite sunk in yet

"It still doesn't feel real and I don't think it will until we are there. I have to keep reminding myself that I'm going to the Olympics. It's amazing to be part of and to be known as being competitive on the world circuit"

Renee expects the fact that the Olympics in China where badminton is such a popular sport to contribute to the environment there: "The atmosphere of the Olympics is huge enough, let alone it being held in China as well. I imagine it will be massive." Click here for Renees profile at www.auckbad.co.nz

Craig Cooper (Waikato)

For Craig the pride of the moment matches his determination to perform well:

"I am a very patriotic Kiwi and competing for NZ in the pinnacle event on the world sporting calendar will be a very proud moment. I think it will be a big success. The whole of China seem to be getting behind it and tickets are impossible to get hold in in a lot of events."

"I certainly think it will be more intense for the Chinese players as they are under huge pressure to perform. As for us I like to think the sell out crowds and the high level of interest from the Chinese public will make us better".

"If it is anything like the Commonwealth Games, I'm sure the village will be fantastic"

"The environment created by Dave Currie and the team and the convenience of having everything at your finger tips all helps to make performing at your best easier. I've met quite a few of the NZ team before and obviously a lot of the badminton players from other countries."

Craig also thinks the Mixed Doubles opposition will be very strong but great for his development as a player:

"The Chinese and Indonesians would have to be the favourites but it is an extremely strong field and we will have to be at our best to do well. I think it can only be a good thing for players to get exposure at events like this and more often than not you see people doing better at their 2nd Olympics than their 1st."

On the announcement of being in the team Craig says "I think it has sunk in and as exciting as it is to have made it, I'm trying to concentrate now on trying to prepare as well as I possibly can."

Once the news of him making the team was announced Craig was contacted by friends, family and workmates.

"The CEO of the Bank of NZ (my employer) contacted me to congratulate me, as did the CEO of National Australia Bank which is Australia's biggest bank and owns the Bank of NZ. It is great to be able to have qualified for an event like the Olympics to show for all the time off my employer has given me."