Badminton veterans reach new level

FOR the last couple of years, Namibia was not able to participate in the South African Veterans’ Badminton Championships on a regular basis.

Last year, a team was entered in these championships but had to start at the bottom, in Section D. That section was duly won and Namibia was promoted to Section C this year, with the championships being held in Durban.At the Durban event, the team was unbeaten in the C section and got promoted to the B section for next year.The Namibian Veterans’ badminton team consisted of Lynn du Preez (manager), Gudrun Murray, Ella Scholtz, Francois du Preez, David Hattingh and Eddie Ward, the captain.In badminton, only players of 35 years old and above are considered as veterans.The Namibians were the only unbeaten team in their section.In their first match, Namibia beat Northern Natal 7-0, before they went on to win 4-3 against Natal.In their third match of the championships, Namibia were too good for the Natal Country Districts Veterans when they went on to win 5-2, while they downed Free State 4-3 in their next match.In match number five, Namibia proved too strong for North West, emerging as 6-1 winners in that match, before recording another high score of 5-2 against North Western Cape in their last match.In the individual championships, Ella Scholtz reached the quarter-finals of the women’s singles, where she lost in the final of an exciting three-setter.Scholtz was graded best women player in the C-section and Lynn du Preez fourth, while Eddie Ward was rated second best man in the C-section.David Hattingh was fourth in the men’s section.In addition, Lynn du Preez was named the sportswoman of the tournament, a tremendous achievement and an indication of the popularity of the Namibian team.The team was sponsored by Bearing Man, Flower Pot, SAJV, RJ Southey, Namibian Lubricants, NamDeb Transport and FurnMart.Meanwhile, the Namibia Badminton Union (NBU) has announced that Namibian Open Badminton Championships will be held on October 20 and 21 in Oranjemund.The tournament is open to players from outside Namibia and players from Upington, Kimberley, Port Nolloth and Kleinzee in South Africa have confirmed their participation.The annual general meeting of the NBU will be held on October 21 in Oranjemund.All clubs have confirmed that they will be represented at the meeting that will elect a new executive to manage the affairs of the union next year.For more information and registrations, Lynn du Preez can be contacted at (063) 23 6667 during office hours, or (063) 23 3696 after hours, or on her cell at 083 976 2077, or by e-mail at franslyn@iway.na.That section was duly won and Namibia was promoted to Section C this year, with the championships being held in Durban.At the Durban event, the team was unbeaten in the C section and got promoted to the B section for next year.The Namibian Veterans’ badminton team consisted of Lynn du Preez (manager), Gudrun Murray, Ella Scholtz, Francois du Preez, David Hattingh and Eddie Ward, the captain.In badminton, only players of 35 years old and above are considered as veterans.The Namibians were the only unbeaten team in their section.In their first match, Namibia beat Northern Natal 7-0, before they went on to win 4-3 against Natal.In their third match of the championships, Namibia were too good for the Natal Country Districts Veterans when they went on to win 5-2, while they downed Free State 4-3 in their next match.In match number five, Namibia proved too strong for North West, emerging as 6-1 winners in that match, before recording another high score of 5-2 against North Western Cape in their last match.In the individual championships, Ella Scholtz reached the quarter-finals of the women’s singles, where she lost in the final of an exciting three-setter.Scholtz was graded best women player in the C-section and Lynn du Preez fourth, while Eddie Ward was rated second best man in the C-section.David Hattingh was fourth in the men’s section.In addition, Lynn du Preez was named the sportswoman of the tournament, a tremendous achievement and an indication of the popularity of the Namibian team.The team was sponsored by Bearing Man, Flower Pot, SAJV, RJ Southey, Namibian Lubricants, NamDeb Transport and FurnMart.Meanwhile, the Namibia Badminton Union (NBU) has announced that Namibian Open Badminton Championships will be held on October 20 and 21 in Oranjemund.The tournament is open to players from outside Namibia and players from Upington, Kimberley, Port Nolloth and Kleinzee in South Africa have confirmed their participation.The annual general meeting of the NBU will be held on October 21 in Oranjemund.All clubs have confirmed that they will be represented at the meeting that will elect a new executive to manage the affairs of the union next year.For more information and registrations, Lynn du Preez can be contacted at (063) 23 6667 during office hours, or (063) 23 3696 after hours, or on her cell at 083 976 2077, or by e-mail at franslyn@iway.na.