Saina Nehwal the star attraction in Star Australian Badminton Open ”“ May 26-31, 2015
A stellar line-up of the world’s best badminton players will compete in the Star Australian Badminton Open at Sydney Olympic Park next month. Current world No.1 Saina Nehwal (India, ) Lin Dan (China), currently two time Olympic Gold medallist and five time World Champion, Chen Long (China) and Australian Open Superseries defending women’s singles champion were announced as competitors at tournament’s launch at The Star in Sydney on April 21, 2015.
The Star Australian Badminton Open – which runs from 26 to 31 May – kicks off the Olympic qualifying period and competition is set to be fierce, with only a limited number of spots available for badminton players to compete in Rio 2016.
The event will feature World No.1’s in Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles, and bring with it an influx of players, officials and supporters from around Australia and the world.
NSW Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events Stuart Ayres welcomed the announcement of international players set to compete in Sydney in May.
“The NSW Government is proud to continue its support for the Australian Badminton Open in 2015, secured for Sydney through our tourism and major events agency Destination NSW, and we look forward to welcoming athletes and spectators to our Harbour City in May to be part of the action,” Mr Ayres said.
Parliamentary Secretary for Major Events and Tourism Jonathan O’Dea added, “This prestigious event attracts significant international media attention, showcasing Sydney and NSW as a world- class sporting destination. It is broadcast to more than 300 million households globally, many of which are in key Asian tourism markets where badminton is enormously popular.”
Badminton Australia Board member and Tournament Director Loke Poh Wong said this year’s The Star Australian Badminton Open has a record field of 340 players from 30 countries vying for top honours and the highest prize money on the Superseries world tour.
“With this year marking the start of the Olympic qualifying points, we have most of the top ten players making their appearance in our tournament, which is part of the MetLife BWF World Superseries,” Mr Wong said.
“Badminton Australia thanks the NSW Government, through Destination NSW, for its continued support or this event. We are also pleased to announce that The Star has again come on board as the naming rights partner, adding to the line-up of other top tier event sponsors including MetLife, Yonex and Crown Holdings Group,” he said.
Greg Hawkins, Managing Director at The Star said, “The Star is delighted to be on board as the naming rights partner of The Star Australian Badminton Open in Sydney for the second consecutive year. As Sydney’s leading entertainment destination, The Star offers award winning chefs and restaurants, five-star accommodation, entertainment and world class gaming facilities as well as sweeping views of the Sydney city skyline. We look forward to growing the profile of badminton throughout Australia as we welcome the world’s best badminton players and all domestic and international visitors to Sydney for this year’s major event.”
The only Superseries event in the Oceania region, The Star Australian Badminton Open also supports the BWF Shuttletime programme, giving children in every part of the world access to badminton. Many of the players competing this year will donate their old racquets, equipment and clothing to be distributed to countries in the Oceania region such as Tonga, Kiribati and Fiji.
Organisers will be encouraging fans and spectators to do the same by bringing their old badminton equipment to the event, to give to players in less fortunate parts of the world.
Tickets are on sale now and available via the website starting at just $25 with premium gold ticketing at $95 on the finals day. Early bird and family packages are also available so taking in the world class badminton event is an affordable and unique family outing. Fans have the option to buy travel and accommodation packages to ensure they don’t miss out on any of the action. Corporate and sponsorships packages are also available by contacting Badminton Australia direct.
For ticketing information and sales, and to stay up to date with tournament details, player profiles, and announcements, visit the interactive and multi-lingual Star Australian Badminton Open 2015 website at www.australianbadmintonopen.com.au
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