Radio Marca Lanzarote – Why do badminton shuttlecocks have to be goose down on the left wing?

We explain the reason why badminton shuttlecocks are made with feathers from the left wing of a goose

The design of the ‘ball’ of this sport is a work of engineering to reach speeds unheard of for such a small object.
Badminton is a sport with origin in India, there it was practiced under the name of Poona, but the British brought it to England around 1873, from where it began to grow.

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The first club was established in the English city of Bath in 1873, later it would be extended to the United States and Canada

In order to play badminton, it is necessary to use rackets, a net and a shuttlecock, as the object equivalent to what the ball would be in other sports is known. It is also called a feather or fly.

This projectile has an open conical shape and is formed by 16 feathers from the left wing of a goose attached to a cork base and intertwined with strong thread. The end of the cork to which the feathers are not attached has a hemispherical shape and a thin leather covering.

These nibs are the original ones and are currently used at a professional level, but the most common ones for playing at an amateur level are made with synthetic materials to be able to be used for a longer time, because the natural pens break easily.

Perfect aerodynamics

The sixteen feathers used for the shuttlecock must be from the left wing of a goose. The reason, as explained by the Spanish player, Pablo Abián, in an interview in ‘El País’, is that they must be from a only wing to always turn in the same direction.

The placement of the feathers and their union allows that when hitting the shuttlecock with the racket, its flight is completely stable. The aerodynamics of this projectile have even been studied for the design of the SpaceShipOne space vehicle, the first manned privately owned vehicle.

The regulatory weight ranges between 4.64 and 5.50 grams, this combined with its design allows the nib to reach speeds of over 300 kilometers per hour, making badminton the fastest racket sport in the world.