Badminton players raring to serve the shuttle

BALLARAT Badminton Association has written to the Premier of Victoria requesting permission to open the Ken Kay Badminton Stadium in Wendouree.

President, Neil Henderson said the association is keen for their members and 10 user groups to return to activity, whether hitting a shuttlecock or curling.

For the committee, the indoor sports and recreation centre is a safe space, but under the current State COVID-19 restrictions, it can’t operate.

“They’re allowing non-contact sport like cricket to play, but we’re not allowed to have badminton players and curlers on court. It’s annoying,” he said.

“I want to know why we can’t open up? We have to have one-and-a-half metres between people, and even if we play doubles on our courts, we’ve got 78 square metres and 18 courts, so we can spread people out.”

Sport returned to Ken Kay for six weeks between the first and second COVID waves.

Mr Henderson said regular sanitising practices and mask-wearing worked well in that period, and they have thorough pandemic procedures to put in place this time around.

“It’s important for people’s health and wellbeing to have us back open again,” he said.

Since their initial shut down in March, the association has had their 45-year-old changeroom and rest room facilities updated, with two new disabled toilets. This was paid for by the City of Ballarat.