Fancied Chinese shuttlers here

The vaunted Chinese squad, led by world’s No. 1 ladies doubles team of Gao Ling and Huang Sui, arrives today, ready to stamp its class against world class opposition in the $150,000 JVC Asian Badminton Championships which fires off Wednesday at the Philsports Arena.

The Chinese are coming in full force with a 22-player contingent, including four each in the men’s and ladies singles events which they hope to rule with a talented roster toughened up by a series of tournaments in the last two months.

The five-day championships drew more than 250 players from 19 countries, forcing the organizers to stage a series of qualifiers on Tuesday with the tournament proper kicking off Wednesday with the elimination round.

Also arriving today is the tough Malaysian team, led by men’s singles standout Lee Tsuen Sang, which will compete in all five divisions on tap in the event, organized by global marketing company IMG and sponsored by Japanese electronic giant JVC.

Indonesia, fancied to spoil the Chinese bid, and South Korea will arrive tomorrow in time for the launching of the event at the Amorsolo Ballroom of the Galleria Suites. The event is backed by Yonex, Manila Galleria Suites, 103.5 K Lite, 96.3 DW Rock and The Philippines STAR.

The Indons, who won three events last year, will be led by reigning men’s singles titlist Taufik Hidayat and Sydney Olympics men’s double gold medalists Tony Gunawan and Halim Haryanto, while the Koreans will be bannered by ladies doubles titlists Lee Hyo Jung and Hwang Yu Mi.

Tickets for the event are available at all National Book Store branches, Robinson’s Galleria (Ortigas and Ermita) and at the Tower Records outlets in Makati and Alabang. Ticket prices are at P100, P200 and P300 during the elims, qualifiers and quarterfinals, respectively, while tickets for the opening day, the semis and finals are pegged at P200, P300 and P400, respectively.

Although they are given not much of a chance to steal the thunder from the big guns, the Filipino players hope to gain much from the exposure and experience from playing against the world top-ranked shuttlers.

NBN Channel 4 and IBC Channel 13 will cover the games in their effort to help promote the sport and bring it closer to the masses. They will start their telecast on Aug. 23 with primers beginning at 1:30 p.m. (NBN 4) and 2:30 p.m. (IBC 13).