2020 Barfoot & Thompson New Zealand Badminton Open Officially Cancelled

Badminton New Zealand has today confirmed news that the Badminton World Federation (BWF) has officially cancelled the Barfoot & Thompson New Zealand Open 2020, with attention now turning to hosting a successful event next year.

The May 2020 event was initially rescheduled to October following the outbreak of Covid-19, but the event has now been cancelled – a decision that was made jointly by Badminton New Zealand and the BWF – in light of the ongoing restrictions to international travel and large gatherings.

Today’s news comes as no surprise given the ongoing effects of the global pandemic and uncertainty around international travel. Badminton New Zealand Chief Executive Joe Hitchcock acknowledged the hard work and countless hours contributed towards this event by staff and volunteers.

“We greatly appreciate the work, time and effort our team, our stakeholders and commercial partners and our volunteers have put into preparing for this event. It is a sad time for us and our badminton community who love this event. We will miss the opportunity to come together this year, but we will be back.”

The New Zealand Open is not alone but rather a victim of significant changes to the international calendar. The HSBC BWF World Tour for the remainder of the year looks vastly different, with two legs of three events each, to take place in Denmark and Asia – minimising the impact of travel and isolation periods.

BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund said the governing body was left with little choice other than to implement a hugely reduced 2020 schedule.

“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was not possible to implement the revised international tournament calendar for the HSBC BWF World Tour as originally envisaged. We look forward to the return of international badminton and we thank all parties and participants involved in the planning process.”

Attention now turns to planning for the Barfoot & Thompson New Zealand Open in 2021. The Super 300 event on the HSBC BWF World Tour has established itself as a popular and well supported stop for players and fans alike, with huge crowds turning out at Eventfinda Stadium on Auckland’s North Shore.

“This is without question our pinnacle event – a chance for the game to showcase some of the world’s best talent right here in New Zealand in front of passionate crowds,” said Hitchcock.

“It is also an event that our best players aspire to. Outside of the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, qualifying for and playing well in the Barfoot & Thompson New Zealand Open always ranks highly on the wish-list of our best young talent.”

The success of the tournament is also a reflection of the growing cultural diversity of the Auckland population, with the wider Asian community supporting the tournament superbly in recent years as they have flocked to see some of the world’s best play, including Lin Dan (China), Saina Nahwal (India) and Ratchanok Intanon (Thailand) to name but a few.

Tournament Director Sam Paterson said the focus will be on maintaining the incredible momentum built up over the past few years.

“So much hard work has gone into this tournament by so many people over many years now - it is vital we continue to build on that,” said Paterson.

“The Barfoot & Thompson New Zealand Open regularly attracts world-class players and Auckland is seen as a very welcoming host city for them. Players enjoy the relaxed environment away from the glare of the tournament, and yet a passionate atmosphere and incredible on-court competition at Eventfinda Stadium.

“We will work with our partners and the BWF to do all that we can to see the tournament return even bigger and better in 2021.”

Highlights of the 2019 Barfoot & Thompson entry list included:

• A record 325 players entered from 21 countries
• 11 players/pairs ranked in the top 5 in the world
• 23 players/pairs ranked in the top 10 in the world
• 11 former World Champions or former World Number 1 ranked players
• 13 Olympic Medallists

For the full statement on the changes to the calendar from the BWF, CLICK HERE

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