Badminton Europe is in the middle of an implementation process of a new, exciting initiative to secure an on-going development and further improvement of the high performance-level in Europe.
September 2017 is planned for the opening of a European high performance training centre called ‘BEC Centre of Excellence’.
The former BEC Development project ‘Future Stars’ is being discontinued, and the project’s funding will now be transferred to a brand new initiative – a high performance training centre!
The objective for the project is clear; the medal spread in international badminton is rather polarized with Asia being the dominant Continent. Badminton Europe wishes to empower talented players from Member Associations that do not have the capacity to cater sufficiently for their talented players and offer them high quality, sustainable training at a World Class Training setup so that Europe can continue to be in the medal ranks at Olympic Games and World Championships.
A centre of excellence
The training centre will provide a fulltime training programme for 12 months of the year, allowing agreed holiday periods and commitments to club matches and national teams. The weekly training schedule will take into account individual development plans and provide sufficient flexibility to allow for studies, work etc.
The capacity will cater for 16-24 fulltime players when fully implemented, however, it is anticipated that the first intake of players to be somewhat smaller. The generic schedule (Mon-Sat) consists of two training sessions per day including 2-3 physical training sessions per week.
All categories and genders should be represented with a combination of young and experienced players, and of course a great mix of nationalities. The centre will be open for players from other Continental Confederations at suiting occasions, as well as other European players for shorter periods to provide sparring or train for shorter periods, e.g. on scholarships.
It is essential that the centre is accessible to players from all over Europe and also that players based there can travel to tournaments in Europe and further afield with ease.
Accommodation will be affordable and suitable in close proximity to or onsite of the training venue.
Furthermore, we encourage education through links with local educational institutions and via distance learning, to support players who wish to combine badminton with studies.
To enter the Centre of Excellence, the players must be selected by Badminton Europe, and recommended by the player’s Member Association. A pre-selections camp, to decide on and select players for the centre, will be organized. More information on how to apply for the camp will follow in the nearest future.
Applications still welcome
A final location for the Excellence Centre is still not decided and Badminton Europe is currently accepting applications from all of our Member Associations. Invitations were send out in May 2016, and some applications have been received but the deadline is not until October 31st, 2016, and we are happy to accept even more. When the final host has been selected by December 2016, Badminton Europe will make the announcement on the website.
Badminton Europe hopes this project will be well received by BEC Member Associations and players, and that this initiative will help improve the general high performance environment in Europe, especially.