Asian, European Teams Improved for MVP Cup 2

June 22, 2006 Manila, Philippines - The Asian and European teams for the second edition of the MVP Cup were announced today in Manila. Both teams have improved their player selections with regard to world rankings compared to 2005.

The team manager for Europe will be Brian Agerbak, the Secretary General of the European Badminton Union and former player/coach. Martijn van Dooremalen will once again take the helm as the Team Captain and will make the decision regarding the singles play on day 3 of the MVP Cup. He currently has 2 of his women’s singles players on the Europe team and in the world’s top 10 (Mia Audina/Yao Jie) and also coached the Dutch Women’s team to the Uber Cup finals in May where they put up a very tough fight against the Chinese.

This year’s team from Europe has shown a marked improvement with a total of 4 Danish players included. “The Danish Badminton Association has thrown its support behind the European effort this year. In order for us to win, it’s important for us to have the support of the Danes” said Brian Agerbak, General Secretary of the European Badminton Union.

Asia’s team manager is the former Olympic champion from Korea, Bang Soo Hyun. Her experience will support Pullela Gopichand as the Team Captain. Gopichand, a former All England Champion and highly respected men’s singles player while she represented India, currently coaches players back in his native country such as the recent Philippine Open Women’s Singles champion, Sania Nehwal. Their leadership will play a major role in Asia’s effort to retain the MVP Cup this year.

Asia has also improved on its team from 2005. With a wealth of talent to choose from the difficulty was to select the right players for each category. The rules of the MVP Cup state that no more than 4 players can come from any single nation and that a minimum of 4 nations need to be represented on the team. Team Captain Pullela Gopichand, indicated that including as many nations as possible was his objective. “Our team reflects the diversity of talent in Asia. With singles players from China, Indonesia and Hong Kong, doubles players from Thailand and Malaysia and mixed doubles from the Philippines, we certainly represent a wide variety of talented styles. We are prepared for the challenge!”

Men’s Singles-
Joining Kenneth Jonassen in the Men’s Singles category for Europe this year will be Danish #3 men’s singles player Niels Christian Kaldau; the Jonassen/Kaldau combination is a marked improvement in skill over the 2005 event which saw the men’s singles category as Europe’s Achilles heel. Jonassen recently battled to a 2nd place finished in the Singapore Open and has reached #7 in the world rankings. Kaldau is currently at #15 in the world.

For Asia, Lin Dan, the world #1 player from China, will be joined by Indonesian ace Taufik Hidayat. Taufik is the current Olympic and World Champion and recently won the Indonesia Open for the 5th time. Dan, who led his team to their second straight Thomas Cup title over the Danes this year and Taufik did not lose a match at the MVP Cup in 2005. Their competition will be tougher this year, but they will probably be favored to score more points than their European counterparts.

Women’s Singles-
Mia Audina Tjiptawan of the Netherlands will once again be joined by her compatriot Yao Jie in the Women’s Singles category. Mia, also a runner-up at the Singapore Open, currently sits at #6 in the world and is the European Champion. Yao Jie finished runner up in the Europeans an is ranked world #7 this week. Both competed in the last edition of the MVP Cup and will have their hands full with a strong Asian contingent in this category.

Wang Chen will join Zhang Ning playing in her first MVP Cup for Asia. Wang, the world #3, will make a difficult opponent for either Mia or Yao Jie. Together with Zhang, who recently took home the title at the Malaysia Open, they will look to create opportunities for the Asian team to score points. With Zhang and Mia once again competing for their respective continents, there is a possibility of another match-up in their long-lasting rivalry that began at the Uber Cup final in 1994 (Zhang has won 8 matches and Audina 5),

Men’s Doubles-
The Polish pair of Michael Logosz and John Mateusiak will represent Europe in their biggest ever match up. The pair have consistently risen through the rankings and have developed as a solid doubles team who are currently ranked #8 in the world. Their selection to the team will be interesting to watch as they’ve played well in Asia with Semi Final appearances in the China Masters in both 2005 and 2006.

Once again, Malaysia will fill the Men’s Doubles position a the MVP Cup for Asia. Last year, the spot was taken by Koo Kien Keat/Chan Chong Ming who won a tough fight against Robert Blair and Nathan Robertson. This year, their elders Choong Tan Fook/Lee Wan Wah (world #6) will take on the role and hope to repeat the success of their compatriots. Recent winners of the Asian Championships and the Dutch Open in 2005, this pair has a wealth of experience!

Women’s Doubles-
Gail Emms, who participated in two winning matches in the 2005 event (Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles) will again represent Europe for the Women’s Doubles category along with her partner Donna Kellogg. Emms/Kellogg have risen to the ranking of #4 in the world due to strong performances at the European Championship (winners), Danish Open (runners-up), Thessaloniki Grand Prix (winners) and generally consistent play.

Saralee Thoungthungkam and Sathinee Chankrachangwong at last year’s MVP Cup lost a tight match to Gail Emms and Mia Audina Tjiptawan. This year, they will look to avenge this loss as they will once again represent Asia. Although they haven’t yet won an event together, they consistently reach the Quarters and Semis of the tournaments they play. They have beaten Donna Kellogg twice (with partner Gail Kellogg), but have never beaten Gail Emms!

Mixed Doubles-
Thomas Laybourn and Kamilla Rytter Juhl will represent Europe in the Mixed Doubles against the home-team pairing of the Asuncions. Laybourn/Rytter-Juhl are currently ranked 10th in the world and are the current European Champions and Danish Open Champions. They are the rising stars in mixed doubles and will face their first Philippine challenge with the Asuncions in Manila!

The home crowd will be excited to once again watch Kennevic and Kennie Asuncion take on the Danes in the Mixed Doubles for Asia. Last year, they had a match point against the world #1 pair of Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms. But the All England champs were too tough for the Asuncions who lost the match in 3 sets. This year, bolstered by a recent final appearance at the Bingo Bonanza Philippine Open, they will look to do one better at the Araneta Coliseum.

MVP Cup Background-
The MVP Cup—which is a selection of top players from Europe taking on a selection from Asia—will take place in Manila from July 14 – 16, 2006 at Araneta Coliseum. Badminton Asia and Badminton Europe will field All-Star teams to compete against each other for USD 100,000 in prize money—an increase from the USD 80,000 on offer last year. The MVP Cup last year marked the first direct collaboration between 2 continental confederations in the sport of badminton; it is pitted to be an annual “Ryder Cup” type of event for the sport of badminton.

Each team will consist of the following players:
• 2 x Men’s Singles
• 2 x Ladies’ Singles
• 1 x Men’s Doubles Team
• 1 x Ladies’ Doubles Team
• 1 x Mixed Doubles Team

The USD 100,000 in total prize money at this year’s event will provide the largest single prize in badminton, USD 60,000, to the winners. The losing team will receive USD 40,000. As each team will consist of a maximum of 10 players, this prize will be quite significant. .

There are a total of 9 matches, 3 on each day from July 14 – 16. Each match on the first day will be worth 1 point, second day 2 points and third day 3 points. This means that the 3 matches on the third day will be the key for each team in taking home the MVP Cup. On the 3rd day, there will be matches where the team captains can select players on that morning which will create major interest on the Final day.

Complete player lists for both teams are as follows:

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