Coed Badminton Club offers fun, competition

Broomball, flag football and ultimate Frisbee won't be seen at the Olympics, but they can be found on the UW-River Falls campus. In spring of 2005, badminton joined the growing list of intramurals offered to UWRF students and has grown in popularity since.

Intramurals and club sports are two types of athletic activities offered to interested students on campus. Club sports are for people that are interested in a particular sport, such as lacrosse, that isn't offered through varsity athletics. Intramurals, on the other hand, are for the average student interested in athletic competition but with no previous experience in that sport, such as dodgeball or badminton.

Kurran Sagan, recreational leadership coordinator for UWRF, said that intramurals rarely change from year to year, as they are originally started due to interest within the student community.

"We have a strong history of success with our activities," Sagan said. "If we offer something new... it usually comes from a murmur we hear from students for something we do not offer."

New proposals must first go through the Student Organization Committee for approval before achieving official recognition by the University. After doing some paperwork, such as developing a working constitution and a safety plan, groups then work with the leadership staff to get funding and practice space.

The Coed Badminton Club (CBC) became official spring semester of 2005. Kai Vue and Vang Lo created the club with the intention of promoting the sport of badminton. Lo, a senior majoring in marketing communications, said that his passion for the sport was ultimately what fueled its creation.

"I love the sport of badminton," Lo said. "I feel that we should have a club to promote the sport... and more importantly to give UWRF students, faculty staff members and surrounding communities the opportunity to play and have fun playing."

CBC's current member list includes nearly 60 members of different experience levels, ages and fields of study. According to their Web site, anyone interested competing, learning new techniques or simply playing the game is encouraged to join. Lo said that more involvement is anticipated and welcomed.

"It's like showing part of the iceberg -- we still haven't touched or marketed to the bottom of the iceberg yet," Lo said.

There are no meetings or mandatory practices, but the club as a whole does participate in a badminton tournament each fall and again in the intramurals tournament in the spring, usually mid-April.

Interested students are welcomed to stop by Karges gym anywhere between 7:00 and 10:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays to join in the practice. The only requirement for potential members is to dress to play. All equipment is provided by the club.

Lo encouraged anyone from students to community members to stop by and see what the club has to offer.

"Anyone can join us for a good badminton time," Lo said. "Stop by sometime."