USA Badminton (USAB) is the national governing body for the sport of badminton in the United States. There are currently 66 badminton clubs registered as of January 2019[update].[4]
| Sport | Badminton |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | United States |
| Abbreviation | USAB |
| Founded | 1936 |
| Affiliation | Badminton World Federation United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee |
| Headquarters | El Monte, California, United States[1] |
| Chairman | Fred S. Teng[2] |
| Operating income | $195,389 (2021)[3] |
| Sponsor | Yonex, Tinsue, United Airlines |
| Official website | |
| www | |
History
editThe American Badminton Association was founded in 1936 when Donald Wilbur, Robert McMillan, Donald Richardson, and Phillip Richardson decided to unite various badminton groups in the country.[5] The name was changed to United States Badminton Association in 1978, and later changed to its present name in 1996.[6]
USA Badminton used to train its elite players at a national training center in Colorado Springs, but they relocated to Anaheim in early 2017.[7]
Badminton is not a popular sport in the United States for several reasons. One of the main reasons is that badminton in the U.S. is seen as a backyard sport. Due to this, the sport has not grown much. Another reason is the lack of Olympic success by American athletes. This lack of success is another reason why the sport has not grown in comparison to other sports.[8] Finally, wages are a huge reason why badminton has not gown. Badminton fails to receive substantial media attention in the United States and with that comes low wages. Participants can earn up to $15,000 for winning a championship, which is a relatively small amount of money in comparison to an average football player that has a salary of $2.7 million.[9][10]
Tournaments
edit- U.S. Open Badminton Championships, an annual open tournament first held in 1954.
- U.S. International, an international tournament sponsored by K&D Graphics and Yonex.
- USA International, a discontinued tournament formerly known as Miami PanAm International.
Controversy
editIn January 2023, it was reported that USA Badminton had paid $1 million to settle a dispute with a former employee who previously served as the federation's chief of staff and SafeSport compliance officer. The former employee claimed he had been fired in retaliation for reporting allegations of sexual abuse by a prominent coach to the U.S. Center for SafeSport, after being pressured by USA Badminton's CEO and its general counsel.[11] U.S. law requires any employees of a national governing body to report suspicions of abuse immediately to law enforcement and to SafeSport.[11] Earlier, U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley, Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, warned the leadership of USA Badminton about their potential breaches and alleged obstruction of an investigation by SafeSport.[11][12][13][14]
References
edit- ^ "Membership". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
- ^ "Fred Teng Elected As The Chairman Of USA Badminton". USA Badminton - Team USA. 8 February 2023. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
- ^ "USA BADMINTON FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2021 AND 2020 With Independent Auditors' Report Thereon" (PDF). USA Badminton. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
- ^ "Find a Club". USA Badminton - Team USA. Archived from the original on August 18, 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
- ^ "Badminton in the US". USA Badminton - Team USA. Archived from the original on January 21, 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
- ^ "History - USA Badminton". March 19, 2021.
- ^ "USA Badminton to Relocate to Anaheim". Sports Travel Magazine. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
- ^ Redford, Patrick (7 November 2018). "USA Badminton Is Another Example Of How Messed Up Olympic Organizations Are". Deadspin. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
- ^ "Why Isn't Badminton Popular in America?". www.badminton-information.com. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
- ^ Kerri Anne Renzulli, Courtney Connley (2019-02-01). "Here's what the average NFL player makes in a season". CNBC. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
- ^ a b c "USA Badminton secretly paid whistleblower $1M". ESPN.com. March 6, 2023.
- ^ "Grassley Pushes Amateur Sports Organization to Comply with Law amid Alleged Obstruction of Investigation into Sexual Abuse | U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa". www.grassley.senate.gov.
- ^ "How USA Badminton found itself at the center of athlete abuse allegations". Los Angeles Times. December 6, 2021.
- ^ Group, Scott Reid | Southern California News (December 6, 2021). "USA Badminton board member calls for firing of CEO Linda French".
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