Sinners and Saints

Charles Péguy said "The sinner is at the very heart of Christianity. Nobody is so competent as the sinner in matters of Christianity. Nobody, except the saint."

The game of badminton can be considered as being played in four dimensions:
Physical
Technical
Tactical
Mental

In the physical dimension, normal flexibility is sufficient to play badminton. No need for the box splits and the yoga mat so... It's interesting that there is very little information on the role of stretching in badminton. There is very little specific research in badminton generally. Our anatomy teacher suggests that stretching is not for the muscles, but for the nervous system. Neurological stretching if you will, can be done by touching your toes in the shower in the morning.. The basic premise appears to be that stretching after badminton is to restore normal flexibility, and I've heard that DOMS may be caused by free radicals. Whatever next?

In the technical area, the grip ideally changes for almost each shot played in a game. There are an almost infinite number of ways of holding the racket in the hand, although only a small combination possible for any single shot. The length and rotation of grip alone give a massive amount of variation. The axis of rotation of the forearm in pronation and supination ordinarily occurs through the wedding ring finger, whereby the radius rotates over the ulna. Think about that the next time you're knocking up and let me know how it goes.

Of the tactical area, we've just been informed that Kenneth wrote a book on tactics in badminton. Unfortunately for us, it's in Danish :( So, how can we get the book translated? Tactics... In the past, players were able to adopt a particular style for singles; Morten Frost was a defensive player. In modern badminton, the tactics have developed considerably. Players now seek to gain advantage in rallies through tactics and deception in order to win matches. They do this by playing in the way they see best to win the game, be it defensively, offensively, etc.Tactics must take the opposition into account, the conditions of the court and how the player is.

I've only begun my reading into the mental area of badminton. A lot of this relates heavily to sport psychology, which we've yet to formally study. In the small amount of reading that I've done, let me say this. The stages of learning can be divided roughly into ignorance, accepted wisdom and incredible claims. Sport psychology is a young field where the accepted wisdom seems to be a small area. If it was a tree, it would be a young sapling bending in the wind, struggling to take root. Many sportspeople don't believe in the whole subject, although it is growing like a buddleia. There are many frameworks and little accepted understanding of what motivation really is. From a practical perspective at the most basic level, we can apply the old managerial adage of "See, Do, Get". It is the foundation of motivation imho. After that comes the Pandora's box of how to train the mind. The model of the 4 C's is appealing. They are Concentration, Confidence, Control and Commitment.

I've thought about this blog for a while lately. I thought about writing a disclaimer. Especially given the fact that Ireland is the second most litigious country in the world. Of this I would like to say; the intention of this blog is to make a positive contribution to badminton players. Think win win or no deal. Let me suggest that people are free to do whatever they like in their own lives and don't hold me responsible if it's not working out... On a related note, I'm always interested to learn and a long, long time ago realised that I don't know it all, not even close. Thanks Paddy.

Been there, done that; got the folding chair..

The entire school set off for the remnants of the IOC congress in Copenhagen at 5am on Monday the 5th of October. On arrival we were given our own IOC folding chair and dawdled into a hall with some talks going on. We were treated to talks by coaches and Olympians. Surprise of the day was to see Poul-Erik Høyer giving a talk on his experience in Atlanta. Just in case anyone reads this, Poul-Erik won a gold medal in badminton singles in Atlanta, representing Denmark. This slide is entitled "Hjemmebanen"; Poul-Erik envisaged that when he was playing, he was playing at home on his home court. Everytime he saw red or white, he thought of all of his supporters. It was a most amazing match which Poul-Erik eventually won to secure Denmark's only Olympic gold medal in badminton to date, at almost 30 years of age.