[gallery size="medium" td_select_gallery_slide="slide" td_gallery_title_input="UBC launches indoor badminton in Jeddah" ids="124719,124716,124718,124717"] JEDDAH — The United Badminton Club (UBC) has taken an initiative not only to popularize the game of badminton here in the Kingdom, but also provide a platform for the sport's enthusiasts to play the game while simultaneously keeping fit and healthy. Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net in a defined court. The sport demands excellent fitness, stamina, agility, speed, and precision. Played in a designated court, the sport requires good control and coordination. UBC, hived from the Jeddah Soccer Club (JSC), plans to boost the second most played sport in Saudi Arabia after football and their effort is to popularize the game even further. The launch of this badminton center in the city was well received. As there were no other badminton courts currently available for expatriate players in the city, the launch of the new center drew a large number of badminton enthusiasts to the opening. The UBC center is located at the Technical Training School Complex in Faisaliyah and boasts of six courts. The UBC center with this move hopes to provide space to the public to play badminton and experience a healthy lifestyle. The well-equipped courts with all modern facilities are run in association with Spanish Soccer Academy. The center will be open every day from 1900-2300 hours. A total 180 players from 20 clubs made up of players of Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Filipino and Bangladeshis nationalities registered with UBC. The objective of the center is to promote badminton along with promotion of recreational and professional badminton in the region. "Our vision is to nurture young talent and inspire them," said UBC President C.M. Naser. The grand event was attended by badminton enthusiasts, sports personalities, media representatives, captains of the clubs, UBC officials and dignitaries from all walks of life. L. Ramnarayan Iyer, executive editor of Saudi Gazette who inaugurated the center, commended UBC for establishing such an international standard facility for the expat community. He said the sport mirrored life in establishing the 3Cs — competition, coordination and composite control — in a court and the lessons learned there could be used in life. He called on all expats to avail this opportunity to stay fit through sport. T. Salim, Malayalam News sports editor, too felicitated the UBC officials for floating this center. He extolled the expats to use this opportunity to sustain and boost one of the major wealth a man needs — health — through badminton that's being promoted by UBC. UBC President C.M. Naser played with Ramnarayan the ceremonial shots to officially launch the center. General Secretary Mohammed Faseesh welcomed all guests and provided a brief introduction of the center. The event concluded with vote of thanks from E.V. Ashraf. UBC organizing committee consists of C.M. Nasser, president; Mohammed Basheer, vice president; Mohammed Faseesh, general secretary; Saleem Chandroth, joint secretary; E.V. Ashraf, treasurer; Sadique Edakkad, club coordinator; Tajmal Babu, logistics and Jaffar Ahmed, V.P. Saleem, V.P. Siraj as UBC advisory members.
