The Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN) President, Francis Orbih, has lauded the 6th Lagos International Badminton Classics as a historic milestone for badminton in Africa.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Orbih expressed his satisfaction with the tournament’s significant achievements.
The finals of the 6th Lagos International Badminton Classics took place from August 30th to September 2nd at the Molade Okoya Thomas Hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.
The tournament saw outstanding performances from the players, with Brazil’s Jonathan Matias emerging as the winner and Ines Lucia Castilo-Salazar of Peru winning the Women’s Single title after defeating the USA’s Lauren Lam.
Orbih highlighted the tournament’s unique feats, including the first-ever Brazilian winner, breaking the dominance of an Israeli duo, an Indian national, and a player from Dubai.
He also acknowledged the first-ever appearance of an African player, specifically a Nigerian, in the quarter-finals of an international badminton classic.
This historic feat was accomplished by Anu Opeyori, Africa’s number-one player.
Orbih expressed his joy and hope that this achievement would motivate other African players to strive for excellence and showcase their talent on the global stage.
He believes that the Lagos International Badminton Classics is a testament to the growth and increasing diversity of the game worldwide.
Orbih revealed that the Lagos International Badminton Classics tournament has now been classified as a pre-qualifying competition for the Olympics, making it more attractive to foreign players.
He noted that this classification would result in the tournament receiving more points from the World Body, thus attracting more players from around the world to participate.
This development, according to Orbih, would be instrumental in boosting the competition’s prestige and attracting more sponsors.
He mentioned that the Lagos International Badminton Classics is the highest national challenge in the world and the first in Africa, attracting players from over 30 countries worldwide.
Despite some challenges encountered, Orbih expressed his satisfaction with the successful conclusion of the tournament, attributing it to the sponsors and the Lagos State Government’s intervention.
He believes that the Lagos International Badminton Classics tournament will continue to grow in size and attract more countries interested in participating in the future.
In the Men’s Double category, PS Ravikshra and Sankar Prasad Udayakumar of India emerged victorious by defeating the Algerian duo, Koceila Mammey, and Youcef Sabri.
For the Women’s Double, the Indian duo of Sirran Singhi and Ritika Thaker defeated the USA duo of Lauren Lam and Paula Lynn.
In the Mixed Doubles category, Jose Guevara and Ines Lucia Castilo of Peru emerged winners by defeating Mina Ivanocic and Petra Polanc of Slovenia.
