The VICTOR Oceania Championships 2024 was played recently in Geelong, Australia. This consisted of an individual tournament followed by a men’s and women’s team event.
Held between 12-15 February, the draw for the individual championships was the largest in history, with 175 players representing five countries. With points on offer for those looking to qualify for the Paris Olympic Games in July, the competition was fierce. The development of players was noticeable from the smaller countries; Cook Islands, Fiji and Tahiti, however Australia dominated the latter part of the draws, with four of the five Oceania Champions being crowned from there.
Men’s Singles: Edward Lau (NZL)
Women’s Singles: Tiffany Ho (AUS)
Men’s Doubles: Lukas Defolky/Huaidong Tang (AUS)
Women’s Doubles: Setyana Mapasa/Angela Yu (AUS
Mixed Doubles: Kenneh Zhe Hooi Choo/Gronya Somerville (AUS)
Following the individual tournament, the VICTOR Men’s and Women’s Team Championships was played between 16-18 February to not only determine the champions for 2024, but the winners would represent the Oceania region at the upcoming TotalEnergies BWF Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2024 in China later in the year.
Five countries in the Men’s Team Event were in the running including Australia, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Fiji, and Tahiti. The same countries minus Fiji were represented in the Women’s Team Event. Although the smaller pacific nations had some competitive matches, the decider in both men’s and women’s events came down to the trans-Tasman rivalry between Australia and New Zealand. With a few players unavailable for New Zealand, they pushed Australia in what were two exciting ties with loud vocal support from both camps. Australia had too much fire power within their teams, claiming the wins, the titles, and the opportunity to play at the most prestigious team event on the world stage.
Men’s Team Event Places
Australia
New Zealand
Tahiti
Cook Islands
Fiji
Women’s Team Event Places
Australia
New Zealand
Tahiti
Cook Islands
Running alongside these open events was the Pacific u17 Development Camp and Pacific u17 Invitation Team Challenge. Offering development opportunities to their member associations is paramount for Badminton Oceania, especially for players and coaches in the smaller Pacific countries. The VICTOR Oceania Championships environment was an opportunity to bring six countries and 40 junior players and coaches together in one space to provide a development camp and learning environment. This was followed by a mixed team challenge for the junior teams.
The development camp included on court and classroom sessions. Erica Khoo – BWF Development Manager delivered a seminar explaining the Dual Career Programme for athletes, a BWF initiative.
