Badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

was introduced and only played at the 1981 World Games. The badminton events of World Games I were held on July 25–28, 1981, at the

San Jose Civic Auditorium The San Jose Civic (formerly known as the San Jose Civic Auditorium and City National Civic) is a former arena, currently operating as a theatre, located in downtown San Jose, California. The venue is owned by the City of San Jose, is managed by ...

in San Jose,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, in the United States. These were the first

World Games The World Games are an international multi-sport event comprising sports and sporting disciplines that are not contested in the Olympic Games. They are usually held every four years, one year after a Summer Olympic Games, over the course of 11 d ...

, an international quadrennial

multi-sport event A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports among organized teams of athletes from (mostly) nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of interna ...

, and were hosted by the city of Santa Clara. China, in its first summer multi-sport event since the 1936 Summer Olympics, competed in badminton only, winning four of the five gold medals. Seventeen of the countries at these Games participated in badminton, making it one of the most represented sports. The players executive of the

International Badminton Federation The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is the international governing body for the sport of badminton recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It was founded in 1934 as the International Badminton Federation (IBF) with nine member ...

, Ciro Ciniglio, expressed disappointment at the lack of media coverage of badminton, saying, "We have many world champions competing here and ... were hoping all these great players would draw crowds. ... The United States over the years has had very good players, some of the finest. It was our hope to help the sport gain popularity in the United states by showcasing all this fine talent."

Medalists

Sources:

Results

Men's singles

First round
Liem Swie King (Indonesia), bye; S. Egbeyemi (Nigeria) def. K. Zeniya (Japan), 15-1, 15-4; S. Modi (India) won by default over J. Sidek (Malaysia); R. Stevens (England) def. A. Salazar (Peru), 15-4, 15-7; Morten Frost Hansen (Denmark) def. P. Johnson (Canada), 15-3, 15-4; G. Valdez (Peru) won by default over M. Sidek (Malaysia); Stephen Baddeley (England) def. G. Higgins (USA) 15-7, 15-8; M. Hadiyanto (Indonesia) won by default over J. P. Baudoin (Belgium)
Second round
M. Hadiyanto (Indonesia) d. Stephen Baddeley (England); plus other matches

Women's singles

First round
Jane Webster (England) d. U. Kinard (USA), 11-7, 11-6; A. Tokuda ''(sic)'' (Tōkairin) (Japan) won by default over J. Youngberg (Canada); Yun Ja Kim (South Korea) won by default over L. I. Ivana (Indonesia); C. Carton (USA), d. C. Blackhouse (Canada), 11-7, 11-12, 11-7; Y. Yonekura (Japan) won by default over A. Ghia (India)
Second round
Sun Ai Hwang (South Korea) d. G. Edwards (Nigeria), 11-0, 11-1; L. Blumer (Switzerland) won by default over W. Carter (Canada); L. S. Yeng (Chinese Taipei) won by default over V. Wiharjo (Indonesia); Tōkairin (Japan) d. Webster (England), 11-7, 11-6; Kim (South Korea) d. Carton (USA), 12-11, 11-1; Lene Koppen, (Denmark), d. Yonekura, 11-3, 11-3; Gillian Gilks (England), won by default over T. Sumirah (Indonesia); Zhang Ailing (China), won by default over S. Skillings (Canada).

Medalists

Results

Men's singles

Women's singles

Men's doubles

Women's doubles

Mixed doubles

References