He went down 21-13 21-16 to the eventual winner Alex Lane (ENG). After the match Font said "I'm obviously disappointed to have lost the match as I felt I had a strong chance to come out the winner. I played to a good level but lost out to the better player on the day".

Following on from his Semi Final at last week's Eurasia Bulgaria International Font has now achieved back to back Semi Final's on the European Badminton Circuit.

For full results on the Yonex Slovak Open visit: www.bwf.tournamentsoftware.com/home.aspx.

Hide article

George along with fellow U-18 England International's Ross Green (Hampshire) and David Jones (Berkshire) trained 4hrs per day under the guidance of Mr Amon Santoso and his two assistant coaches.

Both the physical and on-court sessions were extremely demanding and the variety of players available to spar against were of a high level. George said "Training out in the Far East was a huge learning experience, it made me realise that badminton training is generic across the world and it is hard work that enables a player to become a champion".

George now has two weeks training at the NWBA before he heads off to the U-19 Irish International. He commented "From the Indonesia trip I feel I have come back a lot fitter, a little bit sharper and I cannot wait for the new season to start".

Hide article

They went down 21-11 21-10 to the Danish pairing of Alexander Bond & Ditte Soby Hansen. Despite establishing an early lead in the second set the superior attacking game from the Danish side of the net proved too much for them to overcome.

Dan will now have several days training with NWBA Lead Coach Ian Palethorpe before he heads off to the Yonex Slovak Open, which starts Thursday 27th August.

You can follow Dan's progress here: www.bwf.tournamentsoftware.com/home.aspx.

Hide article

With over 20 players in attendance the training camp consisted of intensive on-court and off-court training. There were two 2hr sessions per day which provided the perfect opportunity for all of the players to increase their training volume and make advancements with their playing ability.

NWBA's Lead Coach Ian Palethorpe said "The training format for the camp worked extremely well, it was great to see all of the players giving 100% commitment over the course of the week".

Hide article

Currently he is the best player to have never won this tournament, or the Olympics for that matter. In the sporting world this makes him comparable to the likes of Andy Roddick (tennis world no.1 that lost three Wimbledon finals) and Colin Montgomery (golfing world no.2 that came runner-up five times in the Majors). To date, Chong Wei has won an unprecedented 35 Super Series singles titles and he probably still has a few left in him; is the Worlds one of them however?

The good news is that since returning from his ban he has looked sharp and determined, no doubt bringing much relief to his faithful fans. His career nemesis has historically been the great Lin Dan but most expect this particular battle to be fought between Chong Wei and Chen Long. If that proves to be the case then the draw dictates that they will not meet until the final. Chen Long’s style does not very well suit Chong Wei however as his game is based around an almost impenetrable defence, giving nothing away whilst patiently awaiting his opportunity to unleash his own vicious attack.

No one can know for sure how this World Championships will play out and as a result we do know that it will be one of the most exciting. There will also be the strongest European challenge mounted since the days of Peter Gade, as the ever strengthening Danish contingent surges forward, led by world no.2 Jan Jorgensen.

My heart roots for Chong Wei but my head puts my betting money on Chen Long. What do you think?

Hide article