In what's been a year of interruptions, the Bendigo Eaglehawk Badminton Association has made the most of its little time on the court and is happy to wrap up 2020 on a high note.
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As soon as restrictions eased in late November and the green light for indoor sport was given, the association swung into action to get its players back out on court.
In recent weeks the players have been enjoying themselves at the association's social competition nights.
Bendigo Eaglehawk Badminton Association president Sam Daykin was thrilled to see the players back on court in recent weeks.
"It's great to be back on court during such trying times which has been a challenge with our new booking system and contact tracing etc," Daykin said.
"There's been a lot of work behind the scenes from our dedicated volunteers to help implement all of the new systems and everything now operates as smooth as ever."
Now that life is slowly returning to normal, the BEBA can start concentrating on hosting one of its biggest ever events late next year.
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The BEBA is welcoming players from across the world to central Victoria for the Bendigo International 2021, which will be held at the Bendigo Stadium.
The BWF International Series tournament has $10,000 in prize money up for grabs and is scheduled to be held the week before the Sydney International to act as a warm-up event.
"This will certainly be the most prestigious tournament we've ever hosted," Daykin said.
"People are able to enter from across the world and it will attract some great players as it's scheduled for the week after the Olympics and is one week before the big event in Sydney."
Badminton Oceania executive Loke Poh Wong was thrilled to see the sport grow within Australia.
"It's great to welcome Bendigo to hosting an international badminton event, with Sydney being an experienced and successful host for many past internationals, Bendigo will now have the opportunity to showcase their new Stadium and an enthusiastic organising team", Loke Poh said.
"We are incredibly excited to welcome international badminton back to this side of the world.
"We hope to reprise the Oceania Tour when we are confident that the initiative can hold the most value for our region's top performing players."
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