Badminto n - Introduction - History - Equipment - Rules of the game - Badminton Court - Grips - Skills and Techniques - Shots - Badminton glossary

Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players (singles) or two opposing pairs (doubles), who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their opponents' half of the court. Each side may only strike the shuttlecock once before it passes over the net. A rally ends once the shuttlecock has struck the floor .

Histor y c Games in Barcel A form of sport played in ancient Greece and Egypt. The beginnings of Badminton can be traced to mid-18th century British India. Initially, balls of wool referred as ball badminton but ultimately the shuttlecock stuck. The International Badminton Federation (IBF) (now known as Badminton World Federation) was established in 1934. Was first contested as an official Olympic sport at the 1992 Olympi ona, S pain .

Badminton Equipment and facilities

Equipment • Racquets : are lightweight (70-95 grams), not including grip or strings. They are composed of many different materials (carbon fibre composite aluminium, wood). Strings : The optimum tension for power depends on the player String tension is normally in the range of 80 N (recreational players) to 160 N (professionals). Grip : The choice of grip allows a player to increase the thickness of his racquet handle and choose a comfortable surface to hold. There are two main types of grip: replacement grips and over grips .

• Shuttlecock : A shuttlecock ( shuttle,birdie ) is a high-drag projectile, with an open conical shape: the cone is formed fromsixteen overlapping feathers embedded into a rounded cork base. The cork is covered with thin leather or synthetic material.Synthetic shuttles (nylon) are often used by recreational players to reduce their costs as feathered shuttles break easily. • Shoes : The proper badminton shoes will have la little lateral support and a very thin sole, lower a person's centre of gravity, and therefore result in fewer injuries .

Badminton court

Badminton Court The badminton court should be 44 feet long by 22 feet wide if playing doubles, and 44 feet long by 17 feet wide for singles. If the facility is indoors, there needs to be enough height for the shuttlecock to be able to float across the net without hitting the ceiling. This height will vary depending on the strength of the players.

Score Rules • Each game is played to 21 points . A match is the best of three games. • At the start of the rally, the server and receiver stand in diagonally opposite service courts (see court dimensions). • When the serving side loses a rally, the serve immediately passes to their opponent . "second serve" doubles.