Badminton champions visit WND to disclose skills

Gao Ling plays badminton with students from Wangzhuang Experimental Primary School in WND on Oct 27. [Photo/WeChat account: xinwu_wx]

On Oct 27, Gao Ling, a two-time Olympic champion in mixed doubles badminton, and Ma Jin, a world champion in women's doubles, visited the Wangzhuang Experimental Primary School, a national badminton reserve talent base in Xinwu district, or Wuxi New District.

Gao won consecutive gold medals in mixed doubles at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, while Ma placed first in the women's doubles competition at the Australian Open 2015 badminton tournament.

In their remarks, these two badminton elites shared their arduous journeys to securing gold medals and highlighted the significance of rigorous training in fundamental badminton techniques. They imparted first-hand badminton techniques to young players in simulated matches on the badminton court.

"Getting up close with Olympic champions solidified my goal: I hope that one day, just like them, I'll be standing tall on that winner's podium too!" said Lu Yilin, a badminton player of the Wuxi city team and a fifth grader at Wangzhuang Experimental Primary School, in excitement.

This primary school set up its badminton team in 2001 and has selected, trained, and cultivated players for the Wuxi youth badminton team since 2015.

Recognized as a national badminton reserve talent base, it has cultivated five national championships and 11 provincial championships and supplied 12 players to professional teams of Jiangsu and other provinces, as well as six players to Shanghai High School.

In 2025, it is scheduled to add 10 more badminton training courts and offer accommodation to meet the team players' training and living demands.

Ma Jin plays badminton with students from Wangzhuang Experimental Primary School in WND on Oct 27. [Photo/WeChat account: xinwu_wx]