Sun* Badminton Championship: A reigning golden generation

“Sitting down with a thud, as pale as a ghost, he cannot believed that the first half ended with 15-8. 

The racquet weighed no more than 0,5kg, but it seemed too much for the scrawny arms. He had never seen such wide badminton court, his long strides seemed to be unable to cover the court, especially the competitor, why it was also 8th grade student but the gap between stamina, technique, strength was so huge.

Looking at his shabby look, his mother who had been following and supporting him throughout the competition could not be more devastated:

– How about let's just give up.

– No. – His willful voice made his mom's heart sink, knowing him, she could only cheer for him and wish him the best. 

One minute break had quickly gone by. All strategies came to a dead end because the competitor was in a whole different level, the only thing he had was this racquet, and his flaming passion for badminton. 

Stepping into the court unhesitating, now, there were only the shuttlecock and the court around him, everything went silent.

30 minutes went by, time seemed to have stopped then exploded with thunderous claps, nobody could believe it: he won, and he could not believe that he could do it himself, maybe his flaming passion for badminton helped him break through all limits, he wasn't sure either, but he knew that "he loved badminton". 

Looking back at that moment, Mr. Le Si Hoang realized: 15 years have gone by with many changes, but one thing remains, his love for badminton. And today, standing on the stage to give an opening speech for Sun* internal badminton competition as Head of organizer, he could not help but feel emotional. More than 40 competitors coming from different units in the company, inspired by him and his descendents, were there for the mutual passion for badminton. 

To assess the effectiveness of a Sun's club, it requires not only a large number of member, but also frequent interaction between members to sharpen skills, share passion and promote bonding.  Sun* 's badminton club has all those factors.

Exciting "head-to-head"

Back to the biggest internal badminton competition of the company, the spectators and the sportspeople had gone through breathtaking and exciting emotions. 

At the competition, in male doubles, the first match is the face-off between Van Mui – Manh Thang and Duc Anh – Hoang Phuc.

Considered to be superior in terms of skills and chemistry, Mui - Thang started off with confidence, creating sharp lines and a lot of pressure for the competitors. On the other side, Duc Anh is no amateur, with hammering slaps, together with Hoang Phuc's skillful arms, after 30 minutes of intense competition, Duc Anh – Hoang Phuc won over the competitors with a close result of 2-1, getting to the next round. 

In another story of male doubles are Xuan Duy – Cong Tu and Si Hoang – Tuan Anh G (at the club, the team has Hoang are greatly well-received). With Tuan Anh G's excellent performance in the previous round, gossips spreaded about how the organizer could be arranging results, and everyone thought that Le Si Hoang will smoothly sail towards the win like every other competition, but ... his competitor was Tien Tu - an outgoing newbie in the company who had been participating in a lot of events. His specialty was the strong defensive style without being flamboyant, wearing out all competitors. And it is indeed, with the elimination round, a small mistake can lead to a heartbreaking result. At the end of the match, Tu - Duy gained victory with a close result of 2-1 in the cheering of fans.  

For every badminton competition, male singles are always the most expected. In this grand "face-off", 3 players Si Hoang, Duc Anh and Xuan Duc gained a lot of expectations from the fans and spectators. 

An early face-off in the quarter-final, the match between Xuan Duc and Duc Anh brought to the fans first-rate and eye-pleasing performances. The 2 players came to the ground with confidence and professionalism. On Xuan Duc's hand is the usual magic Z-force weapon - one of Yonex's hardest racquet. Not a common face in competition, but a frequent in freestyle practice courts, his style also showed that - firm defense, no flamboyance, each hit showed one thing - he had practiced hundreds and thousands of times.

Going against that stability is an explosive Duc Anh, an explosive youth, his most dangerous weapon is his devotion to offense, to the point that the rival got all dizzy and starstruck. No disappointment to the spectators, the 2 competitors brought finess and grace, a storming offense met a firm and flexible style - it seems like they were made to go against each other. 

After 40 breathtaking minutes filled with cheers, Duc Anh got into the next around with a close 2-1.

Women are always the roses to beautify the life of men, so don't think the women of Sun are weak, come to the court to see for yourself the number of participants and how they play. More than 10 female players in mixed doubles, and their skillful and graceful hits brought the fans much surprises and laughters. Nobody thought that with their small figures, Van Minh – Truong Nhi had defeated the more qualified players like Thuy Dung – Manh Thang or Van Mui – Thuy Hang. A considerable encouragement for other players, as well as other members of Sun* playing badminton. 

The finales came with deserving names that did not let the fans down. The men's double is Duc Anh – Hoang Phuc vs Xuan Duc – Bao Duy, men's single is Duc Anh vs Si Hoang, mixed doublt is Duc Anh – Ngoc Ha vs Van Minh – Truong Nhi.

The most noteworthy is the anticipated face-off of the 2 most skilled players of Sun* in men's single: Si Hoang vs Duc Anh. Grown up with youth leagues, Si Hoang is always considered the most skillful and capable in the club. But it seemed like fate, this championship is the "playground" for young players, passion and desire for victory. Si Hoang's skillfulness could not win over the dynamic from Duc Anh. The finales came to an end with lots of excitement and emotions from the audience: Duc Anh – Hoang Phuc crowned in men's double, Duc Anh once again in men's single, and the deserving mixed double winner of Truong Nhi – Van Minh.

Each events or activities, success does not only lie in organization process or the winners, but also how people speak of it. Stories have been told, regrets, congratulations, and most importantly, laughter for the participants, as well as the bonding out of work. 

A 4-hour "face-off" could knock out any drinkers, but the Sun*'s players have shown off their capabilities on not only the court, but also the drinking table. And another name that I don't really want to mention, Duc Anh, once again knocked out other competitors to crown the deserving championship.

Văn Mùi