Stephan The Man

Song Of The Week Jamie Archer (Afro) – X Factor 2009 Audition

This week’s song of the week is Jamie Archer’s audition on X factor where he sings “Sex on fire” by Kings of Leon. I normaly never watch these kind of shows but I have to give credit where credit is due. This guy just OWNS the crowd in this audition and you can’t help to want to get up and join in. He has a way with the audience and sings the song to perfection.
I really enjoyed this performance and I hope you do to!

Pan Am Championships 2009, Silver Medal

This morning I was playing for the gold medal at the Pan American Championships 2009 in Guadalajara,Mexico. My match was against Kevin Cordon of Guatemala, a tall and lanky left hander. I woke up early this morning at 7am making sure I was giving myself plenty of time to wake up for my 10.30 final. Went to the hall, got a massage and had a good warm up. Everything felt fine. Started the match similar to all the other ones this week. But this time it was a bit different. This time I had an opponent who was doing the same things as me but just a little bit better. I ended up making too many mistakes in the first set and lost it 21-11. In the second set I was able to adjust my game by being more imposing at the net and took an 11-7 lead. However after the break Kevin played some very good rallies and came back to even it out at 14-14. From there we went point for point until finaly he took the match 21-19. The second set was anybodies game but in the end Kevin was the one who truly played better net and like I said in my previous updates…whoever takes the net takes the match.
I am still satisfied to have had to play under very difficult conditions and making a finals. It could have easily happened that I lost 2nd or third round. I was able to focus on what I had to do and execute. This was very good mental and tactical training for me as well as everyone else.

I would like to congratulate the Canadian team for having great results at this years Pan American Championships and to keep training hard for the upcoming tournaments.

Now I look forward to the long plane ride home to Copenhagen and to get back to my training routine and prepare for my team match this weekend!
Thanks for tuning in and I will be updating the website this weekend to see if Lyngby has what it takes to confront FKF:)

Pan Am Championships 2009,Moving To The Finals!

Today was a good day for me. I had to play two matches, quarter finals and semi finals. My quarter finals was played this morning against Daniel Paiola (Brazil). I started the first set very well and took a pretty big lead by bascialy playing everything to the net. I got alot of lifts which I then smashed on the floor and hit many out because of the difficulties to control the shuttle in this hall. In the second set I had a much harder time since he started to make good variations with his flat play and his net play. This made me lift more and make more mistakes. He had a 17-14 lead in the second set but I then started to impose my game much more and ran away with it 21-18. In the end I won 21-14 21-18.

In my semi finals I ended up playing against Joseph Rogers who is from my home club back in Ottawa. He had a very good win over the 4th seed from Peru Andres Corpancho. The match against Joseph was a little less eventful since for most of the match I had control of the net was winning many quick points. This led to an eventual win 21-15 21-12.

Tomorrow morning I will be playing against Kevin Cordon of Guatemala. He ended up beating last year’s champion David Snider (Canada) in 3 extremely exciting sets. Both players were using the whole court very well and playing some incredible net shots. It was really a nice match to watch.

I hope to get a good sleep tonight and to play well tomorrow.
To follow the results please click on the link below
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Pan Am Championships 2009, Second Round Close Call

Today I had to play against my good friend but fellow rival Erick Anguiano (Guatemala) in the second round of the Pan Am Championships. In the first set Erick had a very good start and I could feel that he was focused and wanted to win. He was playing some awkward net shots that allowed him to get more lifts than me which in this hall means EVERYTHING. He ended up winning the first set 21-18. In the second set I adjusted to his net play and started taking the shuttle very high forced him to lift to me. It sounds simple but when both player are gunning for the same thing it is VERY difficult. I ended up winning the second set 21-15. In the third it was similar to the second set however Erick was making more unforced errors which gave me alot of breathing room. I ended up winning the 3rd and final set 21-12.
I sounds very funny to just write, win the net and win the match. But it so true and so extreme in this venue. Nobody wants to lift since the shuttle keeps sailing out the back or if you happen to keep it in you have no idea where the shuttle is. But those are the circumstances and I have learned from my trips to Asia that often it is not about badminton, its just about finding a way to win.
Tomorrow I play against Daniel Paiola from Brazil in the quarter finals.
In order to follow the results please click on the link below
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Pan Am Championships 2009,First Round Victory

Today was my first match since I arrived in Mexico. I played against a Mexican player,Marco Garrido in the first round. I had a very simple game plan for the match, keep the shuttle down. It is very difficult to see in the hall, it has a very high ceiling that is painted white! Then you have the bright lights shining in the back which also does not help. On top of that the shuttles are extremely fast which makes lifting or clearing a nightmare. So it is no secret that the one who wins the net…wins the match.
Tomorrow I play against a good friend of mine, Erick Anguiano from Guatemala. We both live in Denmark and last year we both lived in the same appartement. We even flew together from Copenhagen to Guadalajara! However for one hour we decided to put our friendship aside for business.
We play tomorrow at 9am….let the best friend win.
To follow the result please click on the link below.
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Song Of The Week George Michael Freedom ‘90

This week’s song of the weeki is Freedom by George Michael. This song goes back to the 90’s and brings back good memories. Can’t really say why I chose it besides the fact that it is good and also has beautiful women….that’s probably more the reason:)
Hope you like it!

Pan American Championships 2009, Draw

Well I went from the Dutch Open 2009 last week to Guadalajara,Mexico this week. After a VERY long flight to get here and 7 hours jet lag I am getting back to normal. I believe that here in Guadalajara it is about 1800 feet above sea level which means that the shuttles are flying incredibly fast and I am suffering a bit of oxygen deprivation:)

The reason why I did not put up the draw a bit earlier is because they have actually changed it 3 times. Last night being the final one. The first two times was because the placement of players from different countries were done incorrectly.

So here it is the most recent and correct draw for the Pan American Championships 2009.
Please click on the link below to see the draw
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Dutch Open 2009,Tough Second Round

Tonights second round against Anup Sridhar a.k.a Shredder (India) was dificult. I have played him 3 times this year and everytime he really punishes me. However tonight I was definitely in the match. In the first set I was up 20-19 before losing it 22-20. In the second it was tight up to 11-13 and then I made a few too many easy mistakes and let him get away. I think the biggest difference between tonights match and the others was the fact that I was able to get him to the back line much better which opened the court for me. I was then able to get the attack a bit more and win points. I have to keep this good play for next week in Mexico where I will be playing the Pan American Championships.
Until then I will do some training but also relax and recover.

Dutch Open 2009,First Round Win!

This morning I played my first round at the Dutch Open 2009. I was up against a Tall Czech player with a very funny but imposing way of playing, named Jan Vondra. He fairs quite well in EBU (European Badminton Union) tournaments and over the years we have never played each other. I was not too sure how it would turn out but was feeling confident to win. The whole match had pretty much the same tone to it. He was trying to play the shuttle high and deep…let me attack then counter me. His tactic worked in the start of both sets but eventualy I would a few too many good shots and take the lead…and keep it. I ended up winning 21-18 21-15.
My next round is a familiar face. I am playing Anup Sridhar of India which I have nicknamed “The Shredder”. I have played him 3 times this year in the first round of 3 Super Series. All 3 did not go so well. But you know what they say….4th time is a charm:) I play the Shredder tonight at 7.40pm.

In order to follow the match you can go to live scoring at the website below
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Song of The Week WICKED GAME Chris Isaak

This week’s song of the week is Wicked Game by Chris Isaak. Now if anyone out there disputes the fact that this is one of the hottest and most sensual video’s ever made then I challenge you to prove it. Can’t remember the year that this song came out but it feels that it has been tried tested and true since it will always be a hit even 20 years from now.
I also I believe that the brown haired beauty in this video is Danish….how fitting:)
I really hope you enjoy this song and for all the ladies out there…..i know you will