Fun Facts about Badminton

 Facts about Badminton

• 147 countries are members of the IBF
• Badminton is the world's fastest racket sport: a shuttle can leave the racket at a speed of almost 300 km/hour.
• A badminton player can over more than 2 km in just one match.
• A shuttlecock weights between 4.74 and 5.50 grams.
• The best shuttles are made from the feathers from the left wing of goose.
• 16 feathers are used to make a shuttle.
• The biggest shuttle in the world can be found on the lawns of the Kansas City museum 48 times larger than the real thing, 18 feet tall and weighing 25000 kilo.
• The Thomas Cup, the men's world team championships, has been won by only three countries since it began in 1948 - Malaysia, Indonesia and China. The only time the Uber Cup, the women's world championships, was won outside Asia wa by the USA in 1957, 1960 and 1963, other holders are China, Indonesia and Japan.
• It is an American, Judy Hashman, who holds the record number of All-England titles 17 in total.
• Famous personalities who play badminton include Paul Newman, Diego Maradona and Nick Faldo.
• Badminton's history dates back to ancient grece and the early Far-Eastern civilizations, versions of the games, sometimes using a foot instead of a racket, have been depicted on pottery around 3000 years ago in china.
• Once known as battledore and shuttlecock, the game as we know it today took its name from badminton house in gloucestershire, England home of the Duke of Beaufort.
• Badminton's first Olympics was in 1992.
• The two most successful badminton countries are China and Indonesia which between them have won 70% of all IBF events.
• Crowds of up to 15000 are common for major badminton tournaments in Malaysia and Indonesia.
• Badminton is the fastest racket sport with shuttle clocking speed in excess of 2000 mph.
• Badminton is the second most popular sport in the world, after soccer.