I was watching the All England 2010 Qualifying matches yesterday and paid special attention to one of our IBA players, Christian Lind Thomsen (Denmark). He played two awesome matches to get himself into the main draw. However I was told of a youtube video that captured the last few moments of his qualification victory. I think it is really worth watching:)
This week’s song of the week is Mad World by Gary Jules. I thought I would choose a more mellow song this week since I am licking my wounds. I think its a very soothing song that can instantly make you relax. The video is also kinda neat and creative.
I hope you enjoy it.
Yesterday I played my quarter and semi final of the 2010 National Championships in Winnipeg,Canada. My first match of the day was against a young local player Matt Younger. He played quite well and gave everything he had but I ended up winning in two straight sets 21-13 21-14.
The main event was in the semi finals where I matched up against another young player Martin Giuffre. I started off the match very well by going up at the 11 point break and then taking a 17-11 lead. After that my nightmare began. I lost 10 straight points and droped the first set 21-17. Don’t really know what happened, stoped being pro active on court and just let him control the game. The second set was a very tense game for me. I was up for most of the first half and took a small lead at the break. But that was all she wrote for me. I then lost my lead in the second half of the set and could not get it back. I ended up losing it 21-18.
This was a real shame for me since the national championships has always been a tournament that slips through my fingers. Since 2004 (the year I won) I have had a psychological block with this event. This week I performed way below my ability and unfortunatly it was not the first time. Every year I have to come back and try to conquer this major road block so as to prove to myself that I can overcome these big personal hurdles.
Today I played my first two rounds at the 2010 Canadian National Championships in Winnipeg,Manitoba. My first round was against a local player Nick Rush. This match was relatively quick but also proved to be a bit tricky since I had to often did a lot of awkward shots coming from my opponent. The match ended in two straight sets 21-8 21-14.
My second round was also a tricky one. I played a young player Ajit Sidhu from Nova Scotia but is training in Vancouver, British Colombia at Bobby Milroy’s academy. The first set I went up 9-2 in no time, but then he started to play a bit better and I was in a bit of a coma. He came back to 14-14 and then we went back and forth for a few points. I did not attack much up until this point so I started taking the net a bit more. This allowed me to get more attacking chances and I ended up winning 21-17. In the second set I was much more focused and was controling the net and moving from offence to defense at will. This resulted it a much more convincing second set for me, winning 21-10.
Tomorrow in my quarter finals I will be facing Matt Younger of Manitoba. He will be the crowd favourite but I hope to be the favourite to win. My match is at 9.40am local time and will be held at the Winnipeg Winter Club. To view the draw please click on the link below.
This week’s song of the week is Renegades of Funk by Rage Against the Machine. Since I am playing my Canadian national championships this week I feel I need something that will pump me up. I have not listened to this song in a while but I really connect with the opening line.
“No matter how hard you try you can’t stop us now”…..that is precisely how I feel.
Today I will be leaving for Winnipeg,Canada, for our 2010 National Championships. I will be arriving later tonight in Winnipeg in order to be able to get over the time difference between Copenhagen,Denmark and Winnipeg,Canada. The competition starts on Thursday the 28th until Saturday the 30th. I am the second seed and will be meeting Nick Rush from Manitoba in the first round of play. There are other strong players in the draw such as David Snider of Manitoba, Joseph Rogers of Ontario and Alexander Pang of Alberta.
I have been preparing myself quite well and feel that I am ready to take on my potential foes:)
To see the draw please click on the link below.
DRAW
This week’s song of the week is Last Resort by Papa Roach. I have been getting ready for our Canadian National Championships and I have been training like an animal. I am also getting very pumped for this tournament hence the choice of this song. For whatever reason it really gets me going and I feel unstopable:) You will have to excuse the language in the song (even though it has been cut out). Next stop…Winnipeg and victory lane!
This week’s song of the week is Michael Jackson’s Keep it in the Closet. This song always gets me going and I can’t help squinting my eyes and singing along. This hit is from his 1991 album Dangerous. Naomi Campbell is looking pretty good and Michael is grooving as usual. Do not be suprised to see many more MJ songs in the future since I think he really is the KING of Pop!
Do more than enjoy….dance:)
Yesterday I decided to play in a Danish Domestic Grand Prix tournament. It was the first time since I have been in Denmark that I have played a Danish tournament. The purpose of me playing was to get some good tournament matches in before I fly off to Winnipeg,Canada for our National Championships.
In my first round I drew up against Theis Christiansen. I had played him twice last in my team matches and he had beaten me twice. However this time was a bit different. I had a strong start against him which was important since the last two times he always took a good lead. I was able to neutralize him time and time again which allowed me to win many cheap points. I took the first set with relative ease 21-14. In the second set I had a tougher time. He starting playing a bit steadier and was putting more pressure and took a 15-9 lead. I was able to turn the tide with changing up my serve, a few clever shots and some mistakes on his part. I evened the tide at around 18-18 and was able to finish the match with a forehand smash down the line and win 21-19.
In my second my I had to play Jens-Kristian Leth. He used to play full time and won many EBU tournaments a few years back and is quite a worthy opponent. He is VERY tall and can hit some very steep and nasty shots. The first game started a bit slow for me with him putting alot of prussure from the net to the back line. However I was able to adjust fairly quickly and put my base a little deeper in order to cut off his quick pushes. This allowed me to counter him more often and get the attack. It was no easy task but I was able to win the first set 21-18. In the second set it was more of the same, with the exception that there was a bit more net play from my part which again allowed me to keep the attack. The twist to this story was that at 20-15 for me, during the rally I went to hit a shot and slightly went over my ankle. I had a tough choice to make, stop the game or finish the match. I had my nationals to think about…..so I finished the match:) I ended up winning 21-17.
I pulled out of my quarter finals since I did not want to risk any further injury to my ankle since it would defeat the purpose of playing the tournament.
My next challenge will be next weekend with Lyngby against Taastrup Badminton Klub. Looking forward to it….as usual:)
Since its the begining of a new year change is in the air. We all make promises to ourselves, new year resolutions, all in order to improve something that needs fixing. Well the badminton court is timeless and is willing to be worked on at any time of year.
The theme of this article will be “change”. My favorite quote that has been given to me and that I use all the time when I coach is: “Small changes can make a big difference”.
Small changes can apply in many different ways in your game. For example, being able to “hold” the shuttle while playing at the net is a crucial aspect of the game. If you can hold the shuttle for just a fraction of a second longer, it can make the difference between your opponent having a jump start on your shot OR your opponent being paralyzed long enough for your shot to get by him. This is a major difference!!
Technique is not the only thing you can change. Tactics is a crucial element of the game and even with the best technique in the world, if you play with bad bad tactics…..you are toast! The good thing is, sound tactics are NOT complicated. “Small changes can make a big difference”
Lets take changing speeds of the game. If you are playing a player who likes to play a million miles per hour, slowing the game down could be a good option (unless you are superior to him at playing fast). Playing high lifts, slow drops and not engaging in his flat play could make him very impatient and lead to many mistakes. Or you could face an opposite situation where the player is slow and you need to speed up.
As you can see these are not revolutionary idea’s and are accessible to everyone. As long as you keep an open mind, you will be able to see and feel the game in new ways.
What would my website be without my ritual song of the week. And what would christmas be without George Michael. That is why I have combined the two to make the ultimate Christmas song of the week….which is Wham’s christmas hit “Last Christmas”.
Merry Christmas Everybody!
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Stephan vs Chen Jin
