YONEX ALL ENGLAND
OPEN BADMINTON
CHAMPIONSHIPS
To:
Badminton World Federation Members
cc:
All England Management Board Members
Juniarto Suhandinata (Indonesia) [email protected]
Keith Hawthorne
Ian Ross
BWF Events Department [email protected]
December 2007
Dear Colleagues
Your players are invited to compete in the 2008 Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships, which
continues to be part of the new BWF SuperSeries.
This letter and enclosed prospectus contain important information, that should also be brought to the attention of
the team manager accompanying your players.
DATE
The Championships will be held from 4 – 9 March 2008.
VENUE
The Championships will again be held in the prestigious National Indoor Arena in
Birmingham. It is planned to use five courts for the opening rounds.
SCORING SYSTEM
The scoring system will be as set out in the Laws of Badminton, best of three games
to 21 points with extended play and rally point scoring.
QUALIFYING ROUNDS
These will be held in the main Arena and for the first time will be open to the
public. Please note that the Qualifying Rounds are scheduled to start at 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday 4 March and all
events will be completed that day.
CHAMPIONSHIP EVENTS The championship events will start at 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday 5 March. As
part of the SuperSeries, draw sizes for the 2008 Championships will be 32 players or pairs in each event. All first
round matches will be played on Wednesday, and all second round matches will be played on Thursday. All
quarter finals will be on Friday, semi-finals on Saturday and finals on Sunday.
MANAGERS’ MEETING
The meeting will be held on Monday 3 March at 19.30 in the National Indoor
Arena. Please ensure that you have a representative present.
PRIZE MONEY
Prize money is $200,000 with the distribution in accordance with BWF Regulations.
Players not resident in the UK will be taxed at the standard rate of tax (currently 22%) on gross earnings from
prize money and other sources over £1,000 in any tax year. An allowance of £50 per day whilst playing in the
Championships will be taken into consideration in the tax calculation.
ENTRIES
Entries close on Tuesday 29th January 2008. No specific entry form is required but entries must
be in writing and a form is attached for this purpose. Email or fax may be used but we can accept no
responsibility for any mistakes if we do not receive confirmation of the entries by letter. Competitors in each
event must be listed in Ranked Order based on the latest World Ranking list and entries must give the following
information:
Family Name
Forename(s) BWF Player Number National Ranking
Notification of acceptance into the Championship events or qualifying rounds will be sent as soon as possible
after the closing date.
BADMINTON ENGLAND
National Badminton Centre
Milton Keynes MK8 9LA
Tel: 01908 268400 Fax: 01908 268412
[email protected]
www.badmintonengland.co.uk
BADMINTON ENGLAND is the trading name
for the Badminton Association of England Ltd.
registered in England No. 1979158.
A Company Limited by Guarantee
VISAS
If your players and officials require Visas to enter the United Kingdom please ensure that
application is made at least six weeks in advance to a British Visa issuing post. This should avoid problems
which have occurred in recent Championships as a result of delays in applications. We are informed that formal
invitations from us are not essential, but we can provide a letter to our Visa Section if you wish, when players’
details are known.
WITHDRAWALS
Please note Condition 7 in the Prospectus. Please ensure that I am informed BY
TELEPHONE (+44 1908 268400) or BY FAX (+44 1908 268412) or BY EMAIL
([email protected]) as soon as a player is forced to withdraw, giving the reason. If withdrawal
is notified by telephone it must be confirmed in writing. If withdrawal takes place after the draw is made, any
withdrawal for illness or injury must be supported by a medical certificate. If withdrawal arises after your players
arrive in Birmingham notification of withdrawal must be made by the Team Manager in person to the Referee, or
to his deputies, Keith Hawthorne or Ian Ross, and must be confirmed in writing.
ENTRY FEES
Under BWF Regulations players nominated by their national association do not pay entry fees.
CLOTHING
Clothing must be suitable badminton clothing. The Referees will strictly apply
Condition 11 of the Prospectus. Please pay particular attention to the BWF Regulations which require players’
names to be on the back of their shirts and give the option of also having their country and/or advertising beneath
the name. This Regulation also applies to the Qualifying Rounds. Please also note the BWF requirement that
doubles partners must wear the same colours from the Quarter Finals onwards, and the recommendation that at
the same time pairs wear different colours to their opponents. In particular you should be aware of BWF
Competition Regulation 20.5 under which the player/pair placed lower in the draw will be required to change in
the event that opposing player/pairs want to wear the same coloured clothing.
ADVERTISING REGULATIONS
Please ensure that your players know and abide by
Condition 12 of the Prospectus. The Referee’s decision will be final. Please note Competition Regulation 19.2
which makes it unacceptable to tape over or to pin on advertisements, nor in any other way to modify clothing to
comply with advertising or other Regulations. Please note that if you intend to make use of Condition 12 (e) the
BWF’s prior approval must have been obtained.
PRESENTATION CEREMONIES - IMPORTANT: Players must not wear hats or caps of any kind
during the presentation ceremonies. Rackets may not be carried during presentations. Tracksuits, or clothing
as worn during play, will be allowed. No other form of advertising will be permitted. This regulation will be
strictly enforced by our stewards prior to each ceremony.
DRUG TESTING
I do not need to emphasise the importance which is attached to this. You will all be
aware of the BWF Anti Doping Statutes as set out in the BWF Statute Book. Your continued co-operation is
requested.
TRAVEL
Please fax or send full details of your arrival eg: flight, airport, number of passengers on the
enclosed form, well in advance so that we can arrange for you to be met.
If travelling by air your journey should, if possible, be routed to Birmingham International Airport. We will
provide transport from Birmingham International Airport to your accommodation. If you arrive at London
Gatwick or London Heathrow or Manchester and do not wish to fly onward to Birmingham, you can travel by
National Express Airports coach to Birmingham at the following rates:
Single Per Person
Return Per Person
Gatwick to Birmingham Heathrow to Birmingham Manchester to Birmingham
£32.00
£27.50
£11.60
£34.70
£36.00
£18.00
Bookings should be made at the Speedlink desk at the airport on arrival (Gatwick and Heathrow), or at the
National Express desk (Manchester). For times of coaches you may wish to look at www.Nationalexpress.com.
where advance bookings may also be made.
Alternatively you may travel by rail from London Euston Station to Birmingham New Street Station. The
journey time varies between 80 and 100 minutes. We will provide transport from Birmingham New Street
Station.
BADMINTON ENGLAND
National Badminton Centre
Milton Keynes MK8 9LA
Tel: 01908 268400 Fax: 01908 268412
[email protected]
www.badmintonengland.co.uk
BADMINTON ENGLAND is the trading name
for the Badminton Association of England Ltd.
registered in England No. 1979158.
A Company Limited by Guarantee
HOTELS
Details of the Hotels are given on the enclosed form.
RESERVATIONS must be made on the enclosed form by Thursday 7 February 2008 and must be sent to:
Mrs Carol Cossar
Quality Reservations
22 Spitfire Way
Hamble
Southampton
England
SO31 4RT
(Tel: +44 (1)2380 455858 Fax: +44 (1)870 9746860)
Email: [email protected]
NOT to BADMINTON England, nor direct to the hotel. After that date any requests must continue to be
directed to our agents QUALITY RESERVATIONS. I must stress that there can be no exceptions to this, and
that after 7 February we cannot guarantee the special rates.
Courtesy transport will be available between the official hotels and the Arena provided the hotel booking has been
made with our agents. We cannot arrange transport from other hotels.
CHECK IN
To avoid the lengthy hotel procedure team managers can present a list of their squad prepared in
advance showing the rooming list. This must include full name, passport number and date of birth of every
member of their party.
PAYMENT FOR HOTEL ACCOMMODATION
Payment for Bed and Breakfast and extras must be
settled directly with the hotel before departure. Please ensure that your Team Manager checks on arrival with the
hotel what payment arrangements are acceptable. Please note that most hotels in England now require guests to
provide credit card details on check-in.
PRACTICE FACILITIES Courts will be available from Sunday 2 March. Please send an advance indication
of your requirements on the enclosed form. We cannot guarantee to meet all requests. As the qualifying rounds
are being played in the Arena practice time on the championship courts will be limited.
BADGES
Entry to the arena for players and officials will be controlled by colour coded name badges.
Badges will be issued to all nominated players. Badges for team officials will be available on the following scale
Teams with up to 10 players
Teams with up to 11-16 players
Teams with up to 17-25 players
Teams with over 25 players
3 badges
4 badges
5 badges
6 badges
Please complete and return the enclosed Officials’ Accreditation Form.
For the Referee's use for ease of
identification please supply a photograph of the Team Manager with the form. No other photographs are
required.
For a very limited number of additional team officials or players guests we are prepared to sell additional badges
at the price of £50.00 per person. Application with the full payment must be submitted with your officials’
accreditation form for passes. Other visitors are welcome at the full price shown on the ticket order form.
PLAYER BIOGRAPHIES
It is essential that we do all we can to secure maximum publicity for our
sport. To help us in our efforts please send with your Team Manager biographies of all players entered in the
Championships (qualifying as well as championship events) and arrange for them to be taken to the Media Centre
on arrival.
MEDIA ACCREDITATION
Press accreditation forms will be sent to our list of media persons. If you
know of anyone wishing to attend please send details to our Media Consultant William Kings:
[email protected]
BADMINTON ENGLAND
National Badminton Centre
Milton Keynes MK8 9LA
Tel: 01908 268400 Fax: 01908 268412
[email protected]
www.badmintonengland.co.uk
BADMINTON ENGLAND is the trading name
for the Badminton Association of England Ltd.
registered in England No. 1979158.
A Company Limited by Guarantee
VIDEO RECORDING
Video recording will not be permitted when matches are being recorded by the
television production company (Friday – Sunday). Video recording at other times will be permitted only by
national associations from certain clearly defined points. There are a limited number of these positions available.
Prior written authorisation for the use of any video equipment must be obtained in advance from the
Championships Office which must be clearly displayed on the cameras. NIA Security will confiscate cameras set
up in incorrect positions or without a pass.
TELEVISION
Sunset & Vine has been appointed as world-wide distributor of the 2008 Yonex All England
Open Championships. Full coverage of the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals, either live or recorded, is being
offered. Other matches can be covered, depending on interest.
Interested broadcasters should contact:
Sarsfield Brolly
Executive Producer – Development
Sunset & Vine
Elsinore House, 77 Fulham Palace Road, London W6 8JA
T +44 (0)20 7478 7384 F +44 (0)20 7478 7407 E [email protected]
www.sunsetvine.co.uk
Please pass this information on to the appropriate broadcasting organisation in your country.
MEDICAL SERVICES
Full medical and physiotherapy services will be provided.
We look forward to seeing your players in Birmingham.
Yours sincerely
John Gowers
J E GOWERS
Championships Secretary
Enc:
Prospectus
Entry Form
Hotel Booking Form
Practice Facilities Booking Form
Travel Arrival Details Form
Officials Accreditation Form
Ticket Order Form
BADMINTON ENGLAND
National Badminton Centre
Milton Keynes MK8 9LA
Tel: 01908 268400 Fax: 01908 268412
[email protected]
www.badmintonengland.co.uk
BADMINTON ENGLAND is the trading name
for the Badminton Association of England Ltd.
registered in England No. 1979158.
A Company Limited by Guarantee