Badminton is a racket sport that many people think is similar to tennis, but it has made a space for itself as one of the most popular sports outside of the US. Professional badminton is known for its fast-paced and highly-skilled nature, but in comparison, recreational badminton is more casual. Despite this, badminton is an easy sport to pick up and exercises many parts of the body. If you have ever wanted to play badminton here, there is an All Girls Badminton Team at MHS. The coach, Ms. Hawkins, states that “badminton is an official MSHSL sport, so we have a Varsity, JV, and Exhibition team.” Ms. Hawkins encourages new people to join as well; “We are specifically designing this season so that new players can join. We will teach the basics every year, but this year we will be teaching them to the whole team at once, so there will be an even playing field. This is the perfect sport for anyone looking to try something new at MHS.”

She adds that the badminton team will provide “jerseys, rackets, birdies, and everything athletes need besides practice attire and shoes.” If this sounds interesting, students can join by registering with the activities office before the season begins, which is on March 3rd in the Back Gym at 3:00pm. If you would like to support a friend instead, Hawkins says to “come check it out, but to be aware that ‘cheering’ doesn’t really happen during games, we do that after.”

As of now, the badminton team is an all-girls competitive sport. If you are a guy or don’t want to be overly competitive, you might still be in luck. Long-time badminton player Isabel Chen, ‘27, is trying to start a separate recreational mixed-gender club. Isabel states that “instead of a formal high-dedication team, I wanted to start a more relaxed but fun mixed club open to everyone, and practice like once or twice a week. Just for people that are interested and want to improve their skills in badminton.” So, if there is enough interest, there may be an upcoming mixed badminton club at MHS.

Badminton is growing in accessibility across the nation, and it seems the U.S. is finally catching up to the worldwide popularity of the sport. With the formation of a competitive girls’ team and a possible recreational club, it’s clear that MHS is embracing the emergence of badminton, and it may just be a worthwhile venture to welcome the growing world of badminton.