Vijayawada :
Once considered the cradle of badminton tournaments in Andhra Pradesh, Vijayawada is eagerly looking forward to the 79th Senior National Badminton Championship scheduled to be held in the city in January-February, 2015, to revive its past glory.
After a long gap of 34 years, the city will be hosting the national badminton championship, which will be the basis of selection for five international tournaments – German Open, All England Championship, French Open, India Open and Sudirman Cup.
Remembering the heydays of badminton in Vijayawada and how the city became the training ground for many international players, Punnaiah Choudary K Ch, general secretary of Andhra Pradesh Badminton Association says it all started in 1976, when the South Zone Inter-State Badminton Tournament was organised at Electricity Board Hall.
The likes of Prakash Padukone, the then reigning champion played in the tournament, which saw an overwhelming response. Considering the interest of people of Vijayawada in sports activity, the then district collector Santhanam, along with sub-collector AVS Reddy and municipal commissioner GP Rao, took the initative to get funds for the construction of the sports ground in 20 acres, which today is known as IGMC Stadium, he said.
The team of officials, later on played a vital role in the construction of Dandamudi Rajagopal Rao Indoor Stadium. The works commenced in 1979 and the indoor stadium with four badminton courts was ready by 1980.
The inaugural tournament at the stadium was the Senior National Badminton Championship and it witnessed a sensational victory of Syed Modi over Prakash Padukone.
However, since the government changed in 2004, the downfall of the stadium commenced. In 2005, all sports academies across the state including badminton and other academics in Vijayawada were closed by the government.
“In all, 800 boys and girls were getting trained in different sports in about five different academies at the time,” Chowdary said.Around the same time, Pullela Gopichand started his academy in Hyderabad and the focus of badminton was shifted to that place. Then on, no major badminton tournament was organised anywhere else in the state other than Hyderabad.
“We are eagerly looking for the tournament and are hoping to see the past glory of badminton again in the city,’’ D Srinivas, a middle-aged sports enthusiast said. Stadium authorities are now busy making the arrangements for the tournament.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Andhra Pradesh / by Express News Service / December 02nd, 2014