Great line-up for Singapore Aviva Open 2009
Posted by valsus on May 30, 2009
One of the most popular sporting events in Singapore, the Aviva Open Singapore will take place at the Singapore Indoor Stadium from 9 to 14 June 2009 and a star-studded line-up is expected to battle for the total prize purse of US$200,000.
Organised by the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) with partner Singapore Sports Council (SSC) and sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF), more than 250 top international shuttlers from about 28 countries are expected to take part in the tournament across five categories including, Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles. Besides the lucrative prize money, the shuttlers will also be playing to gather precious points in the Super Series event that will count towards their world rankings.
The first player to confirm for the tournament is Vietnamese player, Nguyen Tien Minh. Nguyen is Vietnam’s top seed and ranked 18th in the world (as of 23 Apr). Organisers have also received strong indication from the Badminton Association of Malaysia on the participation of some of their top players including Aviva Open Singapore defending champion, Lee Chong Wei. Other entries from participating nations are expected to be received after 5 May 2009.
Singapore will be sending its entire national team to try to qualify for the tournament including Derek Wong, Ashton Chen, Xing Aiying, Hendra Wijaya, Hendri Kurniawan Saputra, Shinta Mulia Sari, Yao Lei and Li Yujia. Xing Aiying was a quarter-finalist in the Aviva Open Singapore last year and will be returning this year to try and improve on her performance. Fresh off her World Junior triumph in women’s doubles, Yao Lei will also be looking to put her best foot forward at the event. Men’s doubles finalists at the Indian Open, Hendra and Hendri, will also join forces again at the Aviva Open Singapore 2009 and take on some of the world’s most formidable duos.
Chairman of the Aviva Open Singapore’s Organizing Committee, Mr Ng Yoke Weng, said, “This event is one of the most well-attended sports events in Singapore, attracting some of the biggest names in badminton to compete here. With Aviva’s unwavering support, we are confident that this year will be bigger and better with greater excitement amongst the players and spectators alike.”
Tickets for the Aviva Open Singapore 2009 are available at SISTIC at www.sistic.com as well as at all authorised outlets from today. Early bird discounts are available for all fans of badminton until 3 May 2009.
