Ami Afriatni

World men’s singles No. 1 Lee Chong Wei.

12 Shuttlers to Represent Nation at World Juniors

For some of Indonesia’s top young shuttlers, the road to Singapore goes through Mexico.

Twelve of the country’s best singles players under the age of 18 will compete in the World Junior Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico, on April 18-25 with an eye toward the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore from Aug. 14- 26.

“We want to meet the maximum quota allowed at the championships, six boys and six girls. We’ve asked our talent spotter to recruit others from outside the camp,” said Lius Pongoh, head of athletes’ development at the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI).

The top seven in each event in Guadalajara will advance to Singapore.

Three of the group are already at the national training camp in Cipayung, East Jakarta. National players Evert Sukamta and Hermansah will compete with four others, while Rena Suwarno will be the only national player among six girls.

Before leaving for Mexico, the youngsters will try their luck at the Asian Continental Qualification tournament in Kuala Lumpur from March 21-28. The top five in each event advance to the Youth Olympics.

Earning a place will be difficult, Lius said. At the 2009 Asian Youth Under-19 Championship, Evert lost in the opener while Hermansah bowed out in the semis.

Indonesia’s only title came from boys’ doubles, when Yohanes Rendy Sugiarto and Angga Pratama beat top-seeded Kheng Yew Hong and Han Ou Yao of Malaysia.

“I have to admit our shuttlers in singles are not that good compared to doubles, but the chance is still there. I hope they can give their best,” Lius said.

Indonesia also hopes to qualify athletes in 12 other sports for the Youth Olympics. The Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI), along with the government, will provide the budget for federations to prepare their best athletes, said Ade Lukman, the head of the KOI cultural and Olympic education commission.

At the senior level, Indonesia endured another dismal Super Series showing. Its semifinalists at the Malaysia Open Super Series, men’s doubles pair Alvent Yulianto Chandra and Hendra Aprida Gunawan, bowed out to leave Indonesia shut out yet again.

Fourth-seeded Alvent and Hendra lost 13-21, 21-13, 21-13 to China’s Guo Zhendong and Xu Chen, the sixth seeds. Guo and Xu went on to lose 21-15, 17-21, 21-16 to top-seeded Malaysian Koo Kean Keat and Tan Boon Heong in the final.

World men’s singles No. 1 Lee Chong Wei won for the sixth time in his home event, brushing aside Thailand’s Boonsak Ponsana 21-13, 21-7 in just 34 minutes. Wang Xin of China claimed the women’s singles title after Korea’s Bae Youn Joo retired while trailing 19-21, 21-17, 14-6.

Sunday’s finals saw second-seeded Du Jing and Yu Yang of China knock off top-seeded compatriots Ma Jin and Wang Xiaoli to win the women’s doubles final 21-16, 21-12. China’s Tao Jiaming and Zhang Yawen beat Thomas Laybourn and Kamilla Rytter Juhl of Denmark 19-21, 21-18, 21-15 to take the mixed doubles crown. Badminton

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