Badminton meets to discuss disrupted calendar
The Botswana Badminton Association (BBA) will meet this weekend to restructure a calender of activities disrupted by coronavirus (COVID-19).
Following a recent meeting by the BBA executive in Gaborone, the association resolved to start a consultative process with members to map a way forward for lives under the ‘new normal’.
Tomorrow, BBA would host a physical meeting with the clubs’ leadership in the Greater Gaborone region before a virtual meeting with the rest of the clubs on Sunday.
Speaking to Mmegi Sport, BBA public relations officer, Modisaotsile Badubi said the key issue is to restructure the competition schedule in order to return to the courts.
“We are trying to restructure our competitions to look at how best we can move forward in order to return competitively.
One of the things is that the entries (number of players) would be limited in order to meet the government protocols,” he said.
“So we are meeting the club leadership this weekend in a two-part meeting on Saturday and Sunday to brief them on our progress and seek their input. At the moment, we do not have a figure on how much the
meetings will cost but we are working very hard to extend the (internet) connectivity so we can reach all our members from across the country.”
BBA has had its activities affected since the outbreak of the virus. The association has failed to participate in high profile tournaments including the Club Championship, Botswana International Open, Botswana Open and the African Games.
“We do not have a structured league season, but we fill our calendar of activities with tournaments.
This year, we have missed a lot of tournament due to the travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19.
We have not had any competitive action this year, we are directed by funds and the financial year starts in April and that was the time when we
were in national lockdown.”
The association postponed the Botswana Open in August, which has since been rescheduled to run from October 30 until November 1, 2020, as the sport looks to become the latest to return to competitive action.
Modisaotsile said preparations for the three-day tournament were underway as they remain hopeful for a swift return to action.
“We will be hosting the Botswana Open at the end of this month. We have already informed the BNSC (Botswana National Sport Commission) of our intentions.
We are, at the moment finalising logistics including the venue of the tournament. We are very optimistic that we will have a very successful tournament,” Modisaotsile said.