Key Club’s 10th Annual Charity Badminton Tournament raises money for neonatal care

By Staff Writer Helen Wang

The 10th annual Key Club Charity Badminton Tournament (CBT) proved to be another popular success, garnering 468 entries in 23 events. Organized by Junior Danice Long, Junior Howard Tay, and Senior Sarah Chang, CBT was held from February 4 to 5 at the Bay Badminton Center in Milpitas.

Danice Long, Tay, and Chang first began planning the tournament in October. Danice Long said, “We had to look around for sponsors and get designs for our shirts, bags, and all the other products we gave out.” Not only this, but the tournament organizers also planned out potential competition dates that did not conflict with outside badminton or school events.

Key Club uses the funds from CBT to donate to the Eliminate Project, an organization dedicated to ending maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT). Within the past three years, with the help of the charity badminton tournaments, the Eliminate Project has raised enough money to help eradicate MNT in seven countries. This year’s CBT raised $7,100 for the Eliminate Project, slightly lower than 2016 CBT’s total of $8,100. Danice Long later explained that the increased expenditures are from the 10 year anniversary celebration.

Over the past 10 years, CBT has developed dramatically. It started in 2008 in the MSJ gym with 50 athletes and six courts, and moved to Bay Badminton center in 2010. MSJ alumna and 2010 CBT organizer Danae Long said, “The biggest difference [between 2010 and 2017] is that we have been learning from our mistakes, like how to stay more organized and on time.” Danae Long also said that paying attention to the small details, such as enforcing the five-minute default rule and keeping track of players, helped smooth the tournament process. The 2017 CBT has also achieved a new record number of competitors. Danice Long said, “The popularity has grown because badminton as a sport has grown. For example, a lot of people participate in high school badminton, and the fact that high school players can get service hours while volunteering is also an incentive for [MSJ students] to help out.”

Many MSJ students volunteered at the 2017 CBT, and some of the volunteers also competed. Freshman Jacqueline Zhang, who volunteered, said, “I think it’s cool that [CBT] is almost entirely run by students, and yet they can still get it running really well. I think it is a good experience, and I wanted to be part of it [by volunteering].”

“Diversity and people showing support every year  has been [memorable]. I’ve been running or being part of the community for a while now, and I’ve seen some players come back every year and have a good time,” Danae Long said. “The most memorable part was seeing everyone physically playing,” said Danice Long, “Since we started planning the tournament in October, and then seeing everything actually happening, made the experience really pay off.”

Regarding future adjustments to CBT, Danice Long said that they are planning to expand into new tournament playing styles, such as triples play. In addition, she hopes to have more athletes compete at CBT in the following years.

Photos by Sports Editor Cindy Yuan, Photos Courtesy Sean Li