Badminton on BBC 1

[danbelcher]

Did anyone else see the interview on the saturday morning BBC1 sports programme with John Inverdale?

They could have shown a clip of the sport to grab people's attention otherwise any publicity is good publicity and it was good to see badminton being at least highlighted by the BBC which is a good sign that they inted to show some badminton coverage of the Olymipics.

Gail Emms predominatly was interviewed with Donna Kellogg and in the background was Ella Tripp, Andy Wood, Natalie Munt & Tracey Hallam

[Michael Banks]

Daniel, was it any good and did it represent badminton well? Interesting that all the media is focusing on Gail, what with the Guardian article it seems she is the now the badminton spokesperson within the media. Quite a powerful and responsible position.

[danbelcher]

Gail presented herself well although it was the usual thing of trying to convince the general public that badminton is not a garden sport so it was a shame they didn’t use the opportunity to play a clip.

I did write a much lengther reply earlier but seemed to have lost it when I tried to post and lack time now to expand on subject.

[Admiral]

Daniel are you having a laugh? It showed exactly why badminton has such a bad image!! I thought Ella came across really well, but the other cronies have done the game no favours!

Gail, god bless her, tried her best but she has no charisma or spark, she looked embarrassed just being there. The same old cliche's time after time and defending the sport at every opportunity - it was embarrassing!! Any non badminton player would surely have switched over...why should they be interested in watching a sport that is played by such boring characters? The media needs to be kicked in the teeth by the game, not sent to sleep by Gail and co.

[danbelcher]

I think any exposure is good. The BBC have lost the rights to so many sports programmes that they should be looking at other sports, which is why they have been pushing motorcycling. Its profile has been raised by succeses of Fogarty & McKenzie, plus having Suzy Perry presenting undoubtedly helped. If the BBC were to follow that line, things would snowball. Badminton now is more exciting to watch than ever before.

[rhombus]

John Inverdale's contribution was that he made a less than

humerous attempt at a joke, mentioning Badminton as something

to do with " horses ". No attempt to show the " fastest racket

sport " as quoted by Gail and they all seemed uncomfortable

to be there. I think they call it a 5 minute filler at the end of a

show. If this is the kind of exposure the sport is getting, even

though it is the Olympics, the action will be joined at 13-13 all

in the third set......

[Admiral]

Come on Dan...lets not hear the "any publicity is good publicity" nonsense. If you have the chance to promote the sport on BBC1 at a reasonable hour why not go all out and exploit it. Sending a flock of half wits to say how interesting the game is and how popular the sport is in Asia will not get bums on seats.

BAofE....give the players some media training for goodness sake.

[mrmagoo]

it was the same as the commentary at the all england,it made me want to turn the channel over.
badminton doesn't get in the media very often so when it does it needs to hit the public hard.
no disrespect to gail but she has little personality in front of the camera or behind a microphone and its very dull for the public.
badminton has a poor image that needs to be changed.hopefully there will be some exciting games at athens and a platform to build on but considering the success of sydney and the amount of coverage that badminton got,either the powers that be are not interested in televising it or the wrong people are promoting it

[Admiral]

I totally agree Mr Magoo, the commentary at The All England was awful. Gail is coming in for a bit of criticism here and I don't want this to sound like a witch hunt (pardon the pun) but lets get someone promoting the sport who hasn't had a personality bypass.

[mrmagoo]

could be a long wait admiral!but clearly the sport needs someone with some enthusiasm and sparkle in front of the camera

[Michael Banks]

And who do you suggest?

[rickys]

It's funny how this argument keeps coming up again & again in different forms (see foot of page).

Why guys are we always arguing about this one when in fact most of us agree that the image is the problem pure & simple.

You only have to pick up an Argos catalogue & see the picture of the badminton kit, that Wilson of all vendors sells, to see why the general public laugh at the thought of watching badminton. For those of you who haven't seen it, it has four players with a net set-up in a garden, holding their racquets like a frying pan!!!

Now, you could argue that this is exposure as almost every household in the country have an Argos catalogue but unfortunately it's the wrong exposure.

I have to agree that it's important that a modern cutting-edge image is developed for the sport in the UK otherwise bad exposure just reinforces the picture in the Argos catalogue.

It is also sad that the BBC have lost the rights to so many sporting events due to the greed of sporting bodies & Sky TV for that matter.

If people were really bothered about all this then this site would now have a petition of thousands not a few hundred.

It's a shame that when the Olympic badminton starts, we won't probably have the day's highlights of the early rounds with a report even if it's at midnight, like the test match has at the moment.

[mrmagoo]

someone who is comfy in front of a camera.
but as players are rarely on camera its difficult to say who.
how about some media training for the players?this would help no end.

badminton can't afford to miss these extremely rare opportunities of tv coverage by putting people in who can't deal with the exsposure.
gail emms might do better if she was trained to do so.
as it is,more performances like we've seen and you can say bye bye to the tv coverage

the media is everything in sport today and badminton is supposed to be a professional sport right?
so why not do things properly and get trained up!

they must know that the bbc is coming so why the bloody hell don't they prepare the players properly???

[southernmonkey]

Ok now lets all calm down a bit.

The monkey agrees with magoo and the Admiral here.

The monkey saw the crap on the tv and what a disgrace it was.

it looked as if they had all picked straws as to who was goin to speak.

The problem was that the two that picked the short straws couldn't.

Gail was asked a question but didn't wait for the question to finish before answering and Kellogs repeated herself time and time again.

Tripp and that other bird, what's her name should have spoke.

Who was the musketeer in the background ?

Also they should get some better excuses next time as to why badders has a bad profile, as the one about it not being big in America doesn't pop my cloggs if you know what I mean.

I had to turn away from the tv at times as the cringe factor was mealtin me boat race.

The monkey has spoke Geezers

[Phil McBride]

Magoo - spot on, coverage at the All England was dire at the best of times!

Can't really use the "sport that is not big in America" line, it is big in the most populated country in the world for heaven's sake, build on it!

What about the old "soccer" are there many takers in America? It seems to do not bad on the world stage!

[dlp]

I didn't see it but by all accounts it was a pretty marginal item on the programme.

Given that table tennis managed to get a tournament on grandstand including a big build up with player interviews the badminton coverage is falling far short again.

[Admiral]

If the sport has to worry about pictures in an Argos catalogue then it has a serious problem!!...that's a wind up right?

Just get someone in front of the camera who can string a few sentences together... it can't be that hard can it? If we have to settle for the same brain dead players then at least tell them what to say!

The Monkey summed it up nicely....cringe worthy!!

[Michael Banks]

You only have to pick up an Argos catalogue & see the picture of the badminton kit, that Wilson of all vendors sells, to see why the general public laugh at the thought of watching badminton. For those of you who haven't seen it, it has four players with a net set-up in a garden, holding their racquets like a frying pan!!!

Now, you could argue that this is exposure as almost every household in the country have an Argos catalogue but unfortunately it's the wrong exposure..Some very good points Ricky. The Argos catalogue photograph couldn't have been more staged to damage the credibility of badminton.

Also, going back to Darren's point, why do we think that the BBC would show a significant feature on table tennis and not badminton. A few weeks back there was a significant feature on Trans World Sport about table tennis that lasted for over ten minutes and it was put together very well.

[Admiral]

"Why do we think that the BBC would show a significant feature on table tennis and not badminton"....well tell us Banks, why??

Get off the fence Banks and stop stating the obvious!

[Michael Banks]

I'll get off my fence when you get off your high horse.

As this is a discussion forum I was instigating discussion, no rocket science there then. As I said in my original comment, I wonder why table tennis has been adopted over badminton? It is an open question for people to debate.

My theory is that badminton has no ambassadors unlike table tennis. Matthew Syed now has a great column in the Telegraph which is well followed but we have no ex-players carrying the flag. As an ex-player maybe that is something that you could do Admiral instead of bitching on here.

[Admiral]

At last a theory from Banks...see it's not too hard is it.

The Admiral is simply dismayed at the state of the game Banks and he see's this forum as a way of expressing his views. The B A of E keep making the same marketing disasters and wonder why Joe Public is not interested in the sport. We see millions of pounds being pumped into the B A of E and what do we get.....less and less world class players, less people participating in the sport, a fall in membership to the association, less coverage on television and MORE on the payroll. We all think the game is in a state now Banks, but you just wait until that lottery money runs out. You just see how many of that lot jump ship, especially the foreign mercenaries....

The Admiral as an ambassador....let me give it some thought!

[rickys]

So then, why don't the BAofE spend some money on a decent marketing department?

I can hear the arguments that say the money should be spent on developing players. Agreed, but at the end of the day, if you want the public to be interested and get big sponsors, it's going to be down to how the sport is marketed.

Right?

And Admiral, the sport does have a serious image problem (as I'm sure you are more than aware ;) ) as the current image that is perceived by the general public, which includes posters or pictures of the sport that are published, especially by house-hold names is important! It all adds up in the end.

How about having pictures of Gade or something like that jump smashing in sports shops? How about pictures of our players mid-rally during the run-up to the All-England in the national press?

It's no good advertising in the BAofE magazine to the converted is it?

Lastly, I don't feel it's very constructive to knock our own players all the time, as it's not their fault. They need the backing of their organisation at the end of the day.

[mrmagoo]

i believe it has been stated by the performance director in an interview that if the level of funding drops he's off!
wow!! now that is someone who really is dedicated to the cause! :rolleyes:
with people as commited as that no wonder the game is in such a state!

the baofe is,after 8 years of funding,still populated by people who have no idea how to manage a professional sport or how to move it forward.

in my opinion,we can all moan on here but none of us realistically sees badminton as anything more than a dead donkey and i don't see that this will change.

look at how successful badders was at sydney,and what happened after? nothing,so whats different this time? nothing

[southernmonkey]

Banksy,
You don't need ex players to fly the flag, just someone who looks normal and speak for around five minutes about the game.

As the Admiral said it can't be that hard geezers.

Emms made it look like she had been asked something in another language and made a total cock up, you know what I mean son.

Kellog, well say no more.

The hair stylist back stage should have been shot a dawn for the criminal damage to Emm's and Kellog unless it was a seventies theme of course.

It's good to see you off the fence Banksy as you were rather boaring before geezer.

The monkey

[TonyBear]

Its not easy standing in front of a camera presenting without rehearsals.

Most people endup being camera shy :eek: and say little of value the first few times. I would have thought the BAofE would have someone more familiar with such a pressure situation and able to present the sport in a more positive light. This is a skill that is learned and takes practice.

A large part of the failling in a sport reaching the public is that there appears to be little concerted effort to present the sport to the general public. This is not only a problem with the BAofE but also from club/county level. How many clubs actively seek to generate interest in the sport within their local community and schools ?

Badminton is a sport run primarily by amateurs who do everything for free and hence focus on their immediate requirements, and have limited time to do more.

Until the sport is managed more professionally at a local and national level, it is hard to see why anything should change.

Regards
The Bear

[Admiral]

I have to agree with The Bear on all but one important point....the game is run predominantly by amateurs however the B A of E is a professionally run organisation whose employees are paid very well. They are under-performing and nothing changes! The buck has to stop somewhere and I think its about time heads started to roll. Lets bring in some new blood with fresh ideas who show a hunger and a desire to promote the sport. Put some pressure on their jobs and lets see them perform.

[southernmonkey]

Admiral,
You have the monkeys backing here geezer.

Heads should start to roll, sweet mate like it.

admiral, who should roll first ?

Maybe they should let the monkey have ago as he couldn't do any worse.

The monkey

[pink panther]

I would just like to say that apart from Nathan Robertson, Why did we have better players 10 years ago in all 5 events? There was no lottery funding then and the manager was Ciro Ciniglio. Is it the people that now run the show at the BA of E that have made this happen?
10 years ago the team!
Mens singles - Darren Hall, Anders Nielsen, Peter Knowles.
Ladies singles - Helen Troke, Jo Muggeridge, Fiona Smith.
Mens Doubles - Chris Hunt, Simon Archer, Nick Ponting, Dave Wright, Andy Goode.
Ladies doubles - Gill Clark, Gill Gowers, Jo Goode, Julie Bradbury.
Mixed doubles - Clark, Ponting, Gowers, Hunt, Goode, Archer, Bradbury.
All the above players were world class.
We now only have Robertson, Clark & Emms.
What a shame our team is not anything like it used to be!

[eddykid]

what's up with the current topic pinky ?

However the kid will try to answer for you pinky.

All the players above except Muggeridge were world class and the reason for this was that they all had good stroke production.

Muggeridge, christ pinky how dare you put that name in with those pro's.

They also had a good basic level of knowledge about the game and how to play it.

Today this is not the case and this is why we are suffering.

Has gaffu got a strong backhand, The kid don't think so and he's the no 1 in the country.

Tracey Hallam, well say no more.

it's probably the same reason why pinky never made it as a player as his strokes and understanding of the game were not up to the grade.

I blame castlemaine and the pikey massive.

[Vorpulus]

What now needs to be done is not to try and get people to play badminton at their own free will, but to force them to play.

Here's the plan.

Provided enough of you offer your full support, I will enter the next general election - The Vorplex Party - and you lot will put 'Vote Vorplex' on all the windows around the country. If you encounter any trouble with people not wanting my poster on their window, let me know.

When I'm Prime Minister, I will run a dictatorship. I will have thousands and thousands of single badminton courts built around the country. Then, with the help of the British army, I will select start locking 4 people into each court with only 4 rackets, a badminton net, a badminton court and a T.V. set.

I will then invade France and force them to clean the streets of their country, which wreak so strongly of urine. Little relevance to badminton, yes, but I feel its one of the biggest problems in the world today.

As soon as I'm satisfied with the situation in France the people locked up in the badminton courts will see the great Vorpulus broadcasting from the Eiffel Tower in France which will, by this point, be plastered in England flags. I will explain to the 'locked up' that they won't be let out until they are as good as Zhao Jianhua.

"Let his video be shown", I will say, seconds before playing the film of the greatest player ever. The video will never end, and my voice will be heard over the top periodically saying, "This is your Daddy. You must strive to be like him. This is your Daddy. You must strive to be like him. This is your Daddy. You must strive to be like him..." For those of you who still haven't caught on, despite 3 repetitions, the words 'This is your Daddy. You must strive to be like him.' will be repeated endlessly.

Those players who reach world class standard will be let out the boxes and entered in to all sorts of tournaments. The others will be used for testing new drugs etc. There is no room for those who will never be as good as Zhao, in this life at least.

[Michael Banks]

Saying that you expect all the national players to have media training is drivel. Some people are more charismatic than others and that can't be improved with media training. Look at the footballers, most of them can't string two words together but it doesn't affect their income or contribution to the sport.

[pink panther]

Are you telling me that Muggeridge did not have good stroke production?
If you are then I am sure eddykidd you have no idea about badminton! Muggeridge was one of the most talented ladies singles players England had. Obviously you have no idea of any of the results that was produced from this player. Winning major matches for England in team events. Qualifying for the world grand prix finals and World cup. Beating the current European Champion in singles. etc etc This player was even the super sub at the Commonwealth Games for Ladies doubles when she actually took the Gold in the Ladies doubles beating the Worlds No 3 of Gill Clark and Julie Bradbury. How comes Muggeridge qualified for the Olympic Games as British No 1 for 2 Olympics in a row? And she qualified for the Olympics in Ladies doubles in that 2nd Olympics. In her second Olympics she also played with Chris Hunt to play mixed doubles as well. Ok I might be from Kent by I am certainly not biased. What other ladies have done this since?
How can you say this eddykidd?
Is it because she left England?

[Admiral]

Showing your ignorance again Banks... you really have no idea!

[mrmagoo]

banks-media trainig can help you overcome nerves from being in front of the camera thus helping your personality to come through.its the same as if you practice your shots they will get better!

pinky- some players from that era picked and chose tournaments to help them achieve a high ranking.
qualifying for the world cup simply means that you played a tournament every week as it was just points accumilation.
picking and choosing tournaments so you can qualify for the olympics and then pulling out of comps when you get a bad draw by faking injury is hardly world class.stop living in the past ffs.i know your obsessed with "the good old days",but the player you mention was hardly honest.
but she did have another record of having a family member assault a coach!just the image we need

[Michael Banks]

Showing your ignorance again Banks... you really have no idea!A personal insult if someone disagrees, what a surprise! Slating the current setup will get the sport nowhere. Show your knowledge of the game and say something that contributes to the discussion instead of slating everyone who dare suggest something.

[pink panther]

Mr Maggo,
I did forget a few other players to the list - Steve Butler, Sara Sankey, Sue Louis.
I have to disagree with the World Cup as that is chosen by the IBF the worlds top 12 ladies singles players. As for the world grand prix finals that was done on points! As for the Olympics Muggeridge played in all the tournamnets that Troke, Smith, Louis, Morgan, Mann played there were no easy tournaments then! I agree it is easy to beat the system now as there are all of those A grade ones. Back then England only had the money to send players to the regular big world grand prix tournaments and if you have had done your homework correctly you will see had seen the results!!!! What do you mean Muggeridge not honest? Not too sure what you are going on about there. As for Tracy Hallam and this is to Eddy kidd, Tracy has done really well for herself and England. I think its about time you stopped putting players down as you both obviously never made it yourself!

[mrmagoo]

oh pinky!

the world cup was decided on a points accumilation basis,thus meaning that the players with the most points,not average,played it. so if you played 30 comps then you would stand a fair chance of making it,thus meaning that you don't have to be one of the worlds best.
i think you are more than a little naive to think that players in "the good old days" didn't cheat the system to their benefit,i can assure you of this!the days of pulling out because of a bad draw are long gone and this was rampant in the "good old days"!!

but anyway back to the thread.i suppose your going to tell us all now how good they were in front of the camera in "the good old days"! :rolleyes:

[pink panther]

Mr Magoooo
Do you always ignore the questions you don't know how to answer?

[king kong]

To Magoo and Eddykidd,
I have been reading this site and all of your questions and some really stupid comments by you two idiots that have proved you know nothing about the game!
You cannot change the way a player is in front of the camera they either have it or they don't! They are badminton players for heavens sake, they are not training to be TV personalities. If they were good in front of the cameras they would have a job on tv you fools!
As for slagging off our players that we currently have is a real disgrace. This has to be down to the coaches so leave the players be. In any case how on earth can you run down Tracy Hallam she has done very well over the years. As for the comment about Jo Muggeridge this girl had all the shots in the book there is no other lady player in Britain that could play shots like her, this was talent to the extreme! Obviously you guys have no idea on talent!!! Why slate Gail Emms she has done extremely well too. If this is the only thing you guys can do then I suggest you leave the site so that people who want to discuss badminton seriously can do this without the ignorance of you two!

[pink panther]

Well said kingkong. Who are you?

[Vorpulus]

Well Ding Dong King Kong!

If Gail Emms were good in front of the cameras she'd be on T.V. you say? So once you become a good T.V. presenter, you are teleported to the BBC headquarters and given a job? Know your genre sunshine. You're not in the Futuristic Star Wars, you're in King Kong. Embarrassment is the worst emotion and it is something that many badminton players suffer when Gail Emms is on the T.V. promoting the sport.

You say its not the players fault, which it is, and say its the coach's fault, which it isn't. You'd still be an oversized gorilla if you were taught by the greatest coach in the world.

[pink panther]

Again people on this site only want to slag off others. Vorpulus you are only jealous that you could not be as good as Gail Emms!

[king kong]

Well said Pink P. Think its best to leave the idiots in their own wonderland on this site! Good luck plonkers!
Never mind you idiots might make it as player's in your next life, but hey maybe not with attitudes like you have "NO CHANCE". If you spent as much time on your game as you do on here slagging others off then you may have a chance!

[Vorpulus]

You call us idiots King Kong? You trample on buildings and run round like a headless chicken.

Panther it was King Kong who started off the 'slagging off' by callling some people idiots.

<sarcasm> Oh yes, I'm so jealous of Gail Emms' T.V presenting skills . I wish my face turned into a betroot whenever I went on camera. </sarcasm>

[*Gavin*]

lol at post #30 :)

[eddykid]

Ok girls,
i'm awake now.
It's obvious that Pinky has found out how to log on twice as King Konk.

Who would ask who someone was on here........Yeah he's goin to tell you Pinky coz it's you....

They have tablets for that kind of thing you know.

Mr Magoo has shown you girls what actually goes on, on the circuit so lets cut the crap with Muggeridge was the most talented female.

Let me guess Pinky, you still can't beat her or is it that she is physically training you as she was renowned for her hard training.....

Get back to Castlemain and do some more lunges....

Original name though....yeah right

[mrmagoo]

king kong- you have no idea about media training.
if you seriously think that people can't improve their performance in front of a camera then you are indeed the idiot i think you are.you'll be telling me next a badminton player doesn't need to lift weights as their not trying to be a body builder!! :rolleyes:
what do you think i mean by media training-i'm interested to know what your perception of media training is?
your obviously a player otherwise why would you suddenly come on with an alias?or maybe your one of pinkys long lost friends from the early 90's?


to pinky-i don't live in the fantasy world where my friends can't do wrong.tell me what questions i've avoided and i'll answer them,although i'm not up to date with your fav subject "what happened 10 years ago" but i'll try my best.to say we wish we were as good as gail emms is laughable.i can play an overhead backhand further than the front service line.there i'm better

[southernmonkey]

And a net kill.

[Phil McBride]

I think that Mr Magoo is trying to say that there should be a media training course for those chosen to go in front of the camera in a speaking role, after all they are promoting a sport (our sport) which at this momnet in time is in decline and are the "first point of contact" if the old addage is correct and people form opinions within the first 15 seconds of seeing someone then not only training but presentation is all importaint is it not.

I would suggest a trained media person being interviewed, someone with charisma and the ability to spin a good yarn would be helpfull.

And yes these skills can be learned, just like how to clear a shuttle from baseline to baseline, how to smash. To suggest otherwise is just silly.

Look at all the stick Dan Travers got after appearing as a presenter in a hour long special on the Scottish Open last year, sounds like a simmilar situation.

[JoWright]

I'd like to know how you think you all could have done better on a live TV broadcast. If anyone has some amazing answers to the questions asked then i would love to hear them. Maybe if you came up with some constructive suggestions instead of just slating people then we could all learn something from it and help improve the image of our sport.

[Phil McBride]

Jo, I would warrant that the "characters" on this site could indeed have come up with some witty ad libs and seemingly the interview would have had more interest.

Having not seen the interview it's difficult to answer your question, but you do have to admit the wit on this thread and indeed others is quite sharp which would lead me to believe certain posters could indeed have given a good interview.

All that needs to be addressed is if they would wear clothing as tight as the attire Gail would have been wearing as the newly elected poster girl of badminton.

If you want to know what answers we would give please feel free to post a list of the questions posed to the players and I'm sure you will get a reply.

And don't think there was a live interview done with no explanation of the questions given to any of the players and they had towing it, that does not happen!

[eddykid]

Jo,
Letting the interviewer finish speaking would be a start if you know what I mean darlin....

[Vorpulus]

Letting the Interviewer do all the speaking would have been an even bigger improvement.

[Vorpulus]

I've found a picture of Gail Emms doing the thing she does best (http://www.bedfordtoday.co.uk/images/Archive/Sport/JPM_2113.jpg) - Although not very well in that case. Ouch.

And also a picture of the thing she does 2nd best (http://www.badmintonphoto.com/catalog/images/Gail.Emms-Singapore2002.jpg) - Yes, that's going where you think it is.

[Michael Banks]

You might be trying to impress your mates on here but you are a disgrace. Gail is an excellent badminton player and does her best for badminton. If you are a badminton player then your comments are disgraceful, if you aren't a badminton player then you are excused as being naive and misguided. Slagging off is easy especially when you hide behind fancy names, but supporting our players takes guts.

[king kong]

Well said Michael. I have learnt in life that when people slag others off it is only because they are jealous of them. So come on guys get a life and stop the slagging. There is nothing else to say except good luck to all those that are at the Olympics this year. It is the best event in the world, go and do your best and and we are all very proud of you achieving this level. To those that are slagging this must stop as it is now obvious that players that are at the Olympics are reading these sites how disheartening is it if Gail were to read the comments that kidd wrote? Hopefully if she is stong minded she will ignore them and realise that the ones writing these unbelievable comments are just really pathetic jealous people.

[Vorpulus]

I'm a disgrace, my comments are a disgrace, everythings a disgrace, isn't it Banks?

Supporting takes guts banks? Are you trying to tell me that you have to go off to the toilet for a few minutes to compose yourself before you can come out on courtside and shout 'Wohoo, go on Emms!'.

You'd make a useless coach banks.

Shuttle goes in the net. Our banksay says - "Excellent, they don't call it the low serve for no reason you know. Keep it up, or should I say low...gees I'm such a funny guy."

Shuttle goes out the back. Our banksay says - "Excellent, you got superb power behind that drop-shot."

Shuttle goes out the side. Our banksay says - "Excellent, you placed that nicely."

Thank goodness you're not coaching everyone, or the All England final would be between lemmings.

If I coached Gail Emms, she'd be so good she'd look like some sort of amazing robot on court, not making any mistakes.

[Vorpulus]

If Gail Emms really does read this site, she'll know I was only joking when I was talking about the things she does best, don't you Gail?

I expect a response.

[Michael Banks]

Stop bleating on, the comments you made were uncalled for and you know it. If you want to criticise fair game but be respectful. Being nasty may be funny to your mates but you are making yourself look a fool.

[Vorpulus]

>>
Stop bleating on, the comments you made were uncalled for and you know it. If you want to criticise fair game but be respectful. Being nasty may be funny to your mates but you are making yourself look a fool.
>>

Banks, you're one of the few people on the Earth who has no understanding of humour. You're the sort of person who will say 'I don't get it' after every joke. As if I really think Gail Emms is better at modelling than she is at badminton. For heaven's sake Banks.

Now for the sake of Boring Banks - I know Gail Emms is a good player who works hard for her country.

The Vorpulus never makes himself look a fool Banks, make no mistake.

[eddykid]

You are all correct and i am out of order.....

I would like to wish gail and the rest of the team a good holiday and hope you all put your sun tan lotion on in that sun while you are not playing.

see you in a couple of weeks.

Is that ok Banksy, King Konk and pinky the Panky.

O sorry pinky and Konk are the same person are they not.....

The Kid

[mrmagoo]

jo, it might be a live tv broadcast but you should still know the questions beforehand,which should give you the chance to prepare professionally and not appear like a rabbit caught in headlights.
i'll keep saying it but media training WILL help you. this is something that you should be constantly asking the baofe to provide you for.its the olympics for christ sake,the worlds biggest sporting event and steps are not being taken to ensure that the coverage that badders gets is as professional as possible.

why oh why is badders always behind??

everyone is behind the team and wants to see success.those people who critise merely want to see the opportunities that badders gets to be taken more professionally and maximised in the media.these are the people to listen to.
what do you think the bbc would say when they watched the interview? they would see how uncomfortable the players looked and think well,that doesn't make very good tv so we might not bother again!
sorry to be critical but who learned from people telling them yes all the time?

[danbelcher]

Good Luck to the GB team in Athens. Fingers croosed the BBC will show as many of your games as possible.

[Phil McBride]

Problem is Dan, it will be through the interactive service.

[danbelcher]

interactive is fine, the freeview boxes aren't that expensive. My problem is learning how to work the video recorder

[southernmonkey]

I think you will be in luck Dan.

Coz I am sure they will have about 5 minutes for badminton so that should show atleast two of our matches whole.

Not Nathan's of course coz the monkster has the up most respect for that geezer.

The Monkey

[IGGIE]

Just a message to some of the so called badminton supporters who have contributed to this topic. It seems to me to be well past the time to stop the whitchhunt you are waging against Gail Emms. So she may not be the worlds best performer in front of a T.V. camera - so what ! She is not a T.V. "personality" but is first and foremost a badminton player and amongst the best in the country at present. Gail may not be as good as Ra or the Chinese girls but as I say is the best we have and dare I say it a better player than her detractors on this site. With the Olympics fast approaching surely now is the time to get behind Gail and the rest of the team with positive support not this constant nasty, viscious back stabbing. I would really love Gail to come home with a medal (gold would be wonderful) which she could, at least figuratively, shove down a few well chosen throats.

[eddyeagle]

Gail and Nathan are our best chance of getting a medal in the olympics.

some of you on here have made disgusting remarks and im appauled at you.

Vorpus the kid is awful and i bet that he is the most rubbish player. in fact i been tipped off by another on here that he infact a club social player which mean he compared to england level is rubbish. so how can he make remarks like he has. ill challenge you Vorpus kiddus as im a better player than that. look out for me. not hard to spot am I, 6foot 3 stocky but athletic. i also know where you will play your badminton so when time is right i will make known to you my presence and challenge you there and then. well print the results here of your thrashing.

in the meantime i wish all of you at england all the best and forget the rubbish on here that are to cowderly to reveal there real names. if you choose to critise then backup your remarks by standing up and show who you are not hideing behind them. i remember this game from school Vopus Kidus throw a stone from behind a bush and hide. cowerd... you werent around for a while. on a school holiday. why dont you crawl back there and stay there.

my last thing is its not the players fault if there not a good presenter they are just suppossed to be a good badminton player. its upto the BAofE perhaps to send a good spokesman with the players to the TV. think about this...

[*Gavin*]

On radio five this morning (about 7:50) one of the presenters was talking to a correspondent in Cyprus, apparrantly there was going to be some sort of coverage/interview with our badminton players

I missed it, did anyone hear it?

[koboduck]

Referring to the beginning of this quote: I saw the program and I consider it a missed chance, again.
Gail is a great badminton player and a lovely person, and as such a good promotion for the sport. But I don't think she does very well as a PR spokesperson for the sport.

Time and time again I marvel to see that players can only look at their sport from (a) their own 'badminton lover' point of view, or - the opposite - keep (b) whining about the lack of understanding for the sport and projecting their worst fears (in this case the supposed image problem) on innocent bystanders.

I did some international research in my uni days (some years ago) with the same result everywhere: badminton does not have the image problem Gail fears. Conclusions:
1. Hardly anybody seems to think it is a garden sport;
2. The supposed image problem is almost nonexistent, so no possible obstacle for media coverage;
And (something I did not research then but am sure of now): If the image problem existed, it would not be an obstacle for media coverage!

The only image problem I have experienced lately is that people think that badminton players are always whining about their image. Seriously! And furiously denying the supposed image only focuses on it and makes people think that there might be some truth to it, while they wouldn't have thought about it otherwise.

I have played and coached badminton as a profession, managed teams and events profitably and have done successful promotion programs for clubs to substantially increase the number of members. No image problem involved.

Media coverage is hardly ever about the sports' image, but about money, knowing the right people, and sometimes the sports' stars' image, which is something different. Even cricket makes tv, a sport where - to a Dutchman like me - the grass grows faster than the players move. And buying broadcast time has greatly popularized darts and volleyball in Holland.

If I am right, why does the image question pop up every time, you may ask. Well, first of all because some of us badminton players feel the need to bring it up. Secondly, because badminton doesn't offer the media any story. So what is a non insider journalist to talk about?

Badminton needs money for media coverage, a Lamar Hunt kind of promotor, a Lance Armstrong story. More media coverage wil create a larger knowledgeable audience, increasing the 'need' for coverage. And then stars will be created. These will further promote the upward spiral, but that's not where to start. Even though I like Beckham; he owes a lot more to football than football does to him. If he were a bowls player, his life would be really, really different. Media coverage is a sort of top-down method of creating a badminton audience/community/whatever. Really looking at it from a non-badminton point of view, which I could do (and use professionally), because my origin was in another sport.

Equally important is the bottom-up part, local promotion. Although more money/support is always useful, most of it always goes to short-term goals: the present, few top players. A lot more should go to the outposts and bases of the sport: the clubs. Structural/financial support for training etcetera - as Mr Martin Dew has already pointed out - but also PR-wise, preferably by PR-pros. Now local promotion is done by amateurs who think that badminton is the greatest sport on earth, which is not an effective bias, when trying to promote the sport to non-insiders. Apart from maybe football (which is a sport that is - scalewise - unique), the major part of a sport's audience (even for tennis) consists of people that like sports in general and watch the particular sport (like tennis) because they consider themselves knowledgeable, NOT because it is their favorite sport.

I could say a million things more about the matter, which is why I first tried to shrug my shoulders over 'another article/broadcast/interview that will get badminton nowhere'. But I have bitten my lips so often, they bleed. However, a forum is not enough an interactive way to discuss the matter. I will gladly speak to any at the Dutch Open, if they are interested.

Last but not least. People might wonder why I don't do the job, if my comments suggest that I know it all so well. Actually I have done similar projects, in the past. And I would do it for an association or federation if the wages would be anywhere near those of a regular job in the banking or IT world, where I am occupied. But, considering that Mr Martin Dew (whom I think to be one of the few who hits the mark time and time again), doesn't quit his daytime job for a position at the BAO or anywhere else in the badminton world, I think the chances are small.

[Admiral]

Banks , if you take the time to read my posts thoroughly you will see that I suggested media training and YOU in you ignorance called the suggestion "drivel". Maybe you need to take heed of your own advice and come up with some suggestions instead of slating others.

P.S. My last post was not a personal insult it was fact!!

[Michael Banks]

Great post koboduck. One of the best for a long time. What other sport were you involved with before badminton?

[mrmagoo]

Gail and Nathan are our best chance of getting a medal in the olympics.

some of you on here have made disgusting remarks and im appauled at you.

Vorpus the kid is awful and i bet that he is the most rubbish player. in fact i been tipped off by another on here that he infact a club social player which mean he compared to england level is rubbish. so how can he make remarks like he has. ill challenge you Vorpus kiddus as im a better player than that. look out for me. not hard to spot am I, 6foot 3 stocky but athletic. i also know where you will play your badminton so when time is right i will make known to you my presence and challenge you there and then. well print the results here of your thrashing.

in the meantime i wish all of you at england all the best and forget the rubbish on here that are to cowderly to reveal there real names. if you choose to critise then backup your remarks by standing up and show who you are not hideing behind them. i remember this game from school Vopus Kidus throw a stone from behind a bush and hide. cowerd... you werent around for a while. on a school holiday. why dont you crawl back there and stay there.

my last thing is its not the players fault if there not a good presenter they are just suppossed to be a good badminton player. its upto the BAofE perhaps to send a good spokesman with the players to the TV. think about this...


reading through your posts you seem to have an enormous obsession with vorpulus as you only ever seem to respond when he has posted?so what if he isn't an international player(no idea) why shouldn't he comment?
to me you seem to be guilty of your own statement "if you choose to critisise then backup your remarks by showing who you are"? is that a fair comment?i know your an extremely angry person but a civil response will suffice.
i've stated many times that i hope nathan and gail will win a medal but i'm not gonna blindly praise everything that goes on.
its strange how people suddenly sign up to badders.com and post about others not caring and being disrespectful! for you and IGGIE,you have a combined total of 13 posts!WOW you guys care loads don't you!!!
not wishing to pick on jo wright but she complains that people are moaning. now hang on, she's almost totally reliant on the money that comes out of the pockets of the public so that she can play full time badminton so why shouldn't people complain if they see fit to?
how many other sports do you see spokes people talking instead of players especially on tv? none.who wants to listen to a spokes person?

[southernmonkey]

Magoo,
I am with you all the way Brother on this one.

Quality post geezer and well observed.

These sons are quick to jump up when someone disagrees with these gods of Badminton yet we are the ones that pay the wages.

Remember that Eagle and Iggike next time you post ok.

The monkey

[Phil McBride]

Just a message to some of the so called badminton supporters who have contributed to this topic. It seems to me to be well past the time to stop the whitchhunt you are waging against Gail Emms. So she may not be the worlds best performer in front of a T.V. camera - so what ! She is not a T.V. "personality" but is first and foremost a badminton player and amongst the best in the country at present. Gail may not be as good as Ra or the Chinese girls but as I say is the best we have and dare I say it a better player than her detractors on this site. With the Olympics fast approaching surely now is the time to get behind Gail and the rest of the team with positive support not this constant nasty, viscious back stabbing. I would really love Gail to come home with a medal (gold would be wonderful) which she could, at least figuratively, shove down a few well chosen throats.

IGGIE

If you read the posts the posters would like Gail to be given some sort of media training so she can promote "OUR" sport better, giving an interview in front of a camera is a daunting thing to have to do.

If you read between the lines many of the posters do indeed support Gail but for talking sake provoking a reaction gets discussion going :rolleyes:

[koboduck]

Great post koboduck. One of the best for a long time. What other sport were you involved with before badminton?

Football of course, as most of us have probably tried. In fact it is quite easy to earn money playing football, even if you are not really good. And I have played tennis. Ball sports and the like suit me. On the other hand, I am terrible in balance sports like skating and surfing, though I like them as well (in spite of falling regularly).

Hope to meet you again on the forum!

[redkingjoe]

IGGIE

If you read the posts the posters would like Gail to be given some sort of media training so she can promote "OUR" sport better, giving an interview in front of a camera is a daunting thing to have to do.

If you read between the lines many of the posters do indeed support Gail but for talking sake provoking a reaction gets discussion going :rolleyes:

indeed, it's common for major corporations to put forward media training to "important" people including CEO, MD, Executive directors etc....someone did suggest that media training for Gail might be of help.

Nevertheless, to be fair to all the comments on Gail and to give some ideas on how difficult it is to deal with the media, i want to quote someone who have had ultra super extensive media exposure as follows:

Thursday March 31, 11:07 AM

Charles calls media "bloody people"

Click to enlarge photo

KLOSTERS, Switzerland (Reuters) - For a man about to marry the love of his life, Prince Charles has sounded distinctly grumpy in the elegant Swiss ski resort of Klosters.

Mumbling under his breath at a photocall with sons William and Harry, the heir to the throne was caught on the assembled microphones saying: "I hate doing this."

Confronted by a phalanx of reporters and photographers, he whispered "Bloody people!"
..................

someone from the other side of the world might quote Bush's case too.