Badmintonphoto
april 22, 2022 10:59
Badminton Denmark has just presented its elite strategy for 2022-2024. In this context, elite and sports manager Jens Meibom and director Bo Jensen look back at the previous Olympic period, which was extended by one year due to the corona pandemic, and how Badminton Denmark’s elite program (national team training) has performed during this period.
See link to Badminton Denmark’s new Elite Strategy for 2022-2024 at the bottom of the article
Time passes quickly in elite sports, where it is often the latest result that gets attention, and subsequently the focus is shifted to the next competition. It can therefore be difficult to get – and keep an overview of the development that happens from year to year in Badminton Denmark’s elite program.
We will therefore try to reflect on some of the key results and developments that have taken place over the past five years.
In terms of results, the period has been one of the most successful periods in the history of Danish badminton:
- An Olympic gold medal
- A World Cup gold medal
- A World Cup silver medal
- Three World Cup bronze medals
- Two Thomas Cup bronze medals
- Six European Championships for team gold medals
- To All-England titler
- Five European Championship gold medals
The results were created at a time when international competition has increased significantly. From 6-8 countries being able to win medals for the World Cup, to 10-12 countries now being able to win medals at the individual World Cup. It also means that even the best players can risk, in the first or second round, meeting opponents who have the potential to win the tournament.
We can all be proud of that, and at the same time it is a premise that the international competition is only getting tougher and tougher, and it is getting harder and harder for Denmark to maintain its status as one of the world’s best badminton tournaments.
We are on key parameters; economy, setup, resources and recruitment base far behind – not only in relation to the largest badminton tonations in the world, but in relation to all the Asian countries. Furthermore, several European countries such as Germany, France and the UK have larger budgets than Denmark.
That situation will in all probability not change, but Badminton Denmark is constantly working to develop and improve the framework for talent and elite development, and over the past five years has also optimized on a number of points:
- Since 2017, it has thus succeeded in increasing the annual budget for talent development and the elite program by approx. 1.7 million DKK corresponding to approx. 15 percent of the total budget. During the period, Badminton Denmark has increased its self-financing by approx. 1.4 million DKK via increased commercial income, and Team Denmark has during the period contributed an additional 0.3 million. DKK in supplementary fund grants that are given to specific projects over a three-year period. In the same period, the national team sponsorship – and thus the players’ dividends – has increased fivefold, so that the young national team players today get a sum of money to play on the national team, which makes a real difference to their sporting commitment.
- The increased elite budget has, among other things, been used to increase the coaching staff at NETC, which now has five full-time coaches, against a 3.5 coaching standard in 2017. It has optimized the daily training and created the opportunity for more training sessions with coaches on. As well as creating the opportunity for traveling coaches for far more tournaments than before.
- Badminton Denmark has established two new talent centers during the period. Partly Kolding talent center, which will support the development of talents from Sønderjylland and partly a training center in Brøndby for U17-U19 players and U19-U22 players. At all talent centers, structured mental training has also been introduced in addition to the supervised strength training and lame training that was in place.
- Badminton Denmark has also invested in an increased presence of physiotherapists at international tournaments, where there is now at least one physiotherapist for all tournaments, and two physiotherapists for the biggest championships. Furthermore, Badminton Denmark now also sends physical coaches to several tournaments and all major championships.
- In the past period, there has also been a drastic upgrade of performance analysis in the elite program, so coaches and players have access to tactical analysis and statistics on most of their primary opponents. There is still a lot of potential in this subject area, which Badminton Denmark will pursue in the new Olympic period.
- The players in the elite program thus receive even more help and support than before – both in everyday life and at tournaments – from a large number of experts; physiotherapists, physical trainers, sports psychologists, dietitians and performance analysts.
- Badminton Denmark has also formulated a new talent development strategy in the current Olympic period, which sets the overall benchmarks for talent development in Danish badminton. Talent development takes place primarily in the clubs, and the document creates a common frame of reference for the work with the young talents, including values and key strategic focus areas in the talent development. It is clear that with Denmark’s limited population, good talent development is absolutely central if Denmark is to be able to maintain its competitiveness in the future.
- The tournament concept Grand Prix Circuit with six national senior tournaments, where U17-U19 talents get the opportunity to play against the best national senior players is another initiative that was established during the period to support the talent development in Danish badminton.
Developing world-class players is a long and demanding process, and it can take 5-8 years before a young senior player breaks through into the world top. Therefore, elite sports are cyclical, and there will be periods in Danish badminton where a category is strong, and periods that can be described as “rebuild” periods, where young players must develop and break through to the top of the world.
We also see this cyclical dynamic internationally, and it is something that affects all countries – even the largest and most resourceful.
For example, China is currently reviewing a rebuild period in men’s doubles and especially in men’s singles, and Korea has a rebuild period in men’s and mixed doubles. For both countries’ categories, where they were world dominant 5-10 years ago.
Badminton Denmark has done well over the past five years, but is also fully aware that it will most likely only be more difficult in the future to create the same results as in the current period in increasing international competition. Badminton Denmark will work hard to continue to develop the elite program and is full of confidence that Danish badminton can continue to be competitive in international badminton, and that we can continue to win medals for Denmark at the biggest championships – both in the period 2022-2024 and subsequently .
What results and what development Badminton Denmark will pursue in the coming Olympic period, we have described in the new elite strategy 2022-2024, which you can read via the link below.
Click here to read Badminton Denmark’s Elite Strategy for 2022-2024
Jens Meibom Bo Jensen
Elite and Sports Manager Director
Tags: Bo Jensen, Elite program, Elite strategy, Jens Meibom
Category: Elite, Home, Grand Prix Circuit, Inspiration, National Team, Medal, News
