100 BC - A form of Badminton played by civilisations in Greece, India and China
1860's - A version of Badminton named 'Poona' played by British Army officers in India
1873 - 'Poona' played at a lawn party held by the Duke of Beaufort at his country estate, Badminton. Guests introduced it to other friends as 'the Badminton Game'
1877 - Bath Badminton Club developed the first written rules, which have remained essentially the same ever since
1934 - The International Badminton Federation founded with nine members
1966 - Badminton introduced as a participant sport at the Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica
1972 - Badminton staged as a demonstration sport at the Munich Olympics
1992 - Badminton introduced as a main event at the Barcelona Olympics
1993 - Membership of the IBF grows to 142 nations
The sport of Badminton started life nearly 150 years ago in the great hall of one the stately homes of England, Badminton House in Gloucestershire.
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The game's historians tell us
that is where the daughters of the Duke of Beaufort used to play
battledore and shuttlecock, a forerunner of the game we now know as
badminton. To make life more
interesting, they rigged up a string across the hall and the game of
badminton was born. It was soon taken up by army officers staying at
Beaufort house and by the mid-1870's, badminton clubs were being set up
all over the country.
The sports first governing body, later to become the Badminton Association of England, was formed in 1898 and promptly established the laws of the game, covering the size of the court and the scoring system. |
During the 20th century badminton grew dramatically from a country house pastime into a major racket sport here in the UK and worldwide. It is one of the few sports where men and women can compete on more or less equal terms, hence the popularity of mixed doubles in the many clubs and leagues around the country.
Badminton, an Olympic sport since 1992, was introduced into the Commonwealth Games at Kingston, Jamaica, in 1966, since when it has become one of the most popular spectator events at all major competitions.
The sport continues to grow internationally, as at the Kuala Lumpar games, players from 23 nations competed in the men's event and 20 nations were represented in the women's section.
