Badminton was introduced to Singapore by the British in the early 19th century. By the mid-1920s, the game became increasingly popular and spread quickly to the rest of the local population. Amid the rising popularity, badminton enthusiasts began forming clubs, or “parties”, to meet and play the game. It was during this period that the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) was established to promote the sport and organise competitions. The first official annual open championships was held in that period with the best players from the tournament such as E. J. Vass, Tan Chong Tee, Alice Pennefather and Ong Siew Eng were chosen to represent Singapore in the regional tournaments.
After the World War II (1942–45), Singapore would reached the height of its badminton success in the 1950s with the rise of players such as Wong Peng Soon, Ong Poh Lim and Ismail Marjan. Then, as part of the Malayan team, Singapore clinched the inaugural Thomas Cup in 1949 and retained it in 1952 and 1955. Wong and Ong will also go on to win the All England Championships, a competition that was once considered as the 'unofficial' World Championships of badminton.
After Singapore gained independence in 1965, badminton would experience a revival in Singapore when Wong Shoon Keat won the men's singles gold medal at the 1983 SEA Games. In 1986, Singapore qualified for the finals of the Thomas Cup for the first time as an independent nation. At the 2002 Commonwealth Games, Li Li captured Singapore first gold medal in the women's singles. The following year, at the 2003 SEA Games, Singapore team clinched their first-ever gold in the women's team event. In 2006, the women's team reached the finals of Uber Cup for the first time. Success continued to follow for the women's team shuttler when Fu Mingtian won Singapore's first gold medal in women's singles at the 2011 SEA Games.
In 2021, Loh Kean Yew made history by becoming the men's singles world champion, winning the title at the 2021 BWF World Championships, becoming the first Singaporean to achieve this feat. At the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Terry Hee and Jessica Tan clinched Singapore's first ever badminton mixed doubles gold.
Badminton in Singapore is managed by the Singapore Badminton Association.
History
This sport of badminton was first introduced to Singapore during the British colonial era in the early 19th century. The game, at the beginning, was essentially played within the circle of the affluent British residents in Singapore. Then in the 1920s, the sport gained popularity among the local population, especially among those from the upper social class such as the white collar workforce, the social elites from English speaking background. Students from Chinese education played it as well, but badminton might seem to be less widespread for the Chinese-educated who were usually less wealthy as compared to the English-educated. Nonetheless, the sport's wide acceptance certainly had to do with the ease at which how the preparation of the game was made—a minimum of only two players are needed and the court can be anywhere where the ground is flat and uninhibited by wind.
The increasing interest in the sports had led to many badminton clubs been formed among the local players. This was when the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) was founded in 1929. The association, supported by patrons such as Tan Chin Tuan (director of the OCBC bank), Song Ong Siang (an influential figure of the Straits Chinese community) and Aw Boon Haw (a well-known Chinese entrepreneur and philanthropist) aimed to promote the game as well as to select the best players from various clubs by organising games among the clubs, so as to produce local athletes to participate in the renowned tournaments among the regional and international community.
Facilities
In the pre and postwar periods, badminton games and SBA meetings were held mostly at the former Clerical Union Hall before they were shifted to the Old Singapore Badminton Hall after it opened in 1952. The old badminton hall was built mainly for the Thomas Cup. When the first competition was held in the UK in 1949, the Malayan team won the championship. As a result, Malaya also won the right to host the next Thomas Cup, that was scheduled for 1952. As there was no suitable indoor sports hall in Malaya then, the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) decided to build one in Singapore.