The skill and athleticism displayed in Friday’s U13 matches truly reinforced that we have a spectacular group of young athletes coming up in British Columbia. In U13 Boys’ Singles, top seed Jadon Tsang (ClearOne) used his keen eye and swift racquet to secure a spot in the gold medal matchup. Number two seed Justin Law (VRC), who also put on an impressive display, will face Tsang in Sunday’s finals.
The top two seeds in U13 Girls’ Singles will also advance to the finals on Sunday. Number one seed Jacqueline Fei (Ace), who had an excellent showing with Team BC at the Western Canadian Team Championships in January, was on the top of her game during Saturday’s matches. Number two seed Tiffany Xie (St. John’s) also put on put on a great show for spectators, and should prove a worthy challenge for Fei in the finals.
In U15 Girls’ Singles, WCTC Team BC alumni once again dominated the courts. Top seed Annie Chow (ClearOne) was a force to be reckoned with in her matches, never letting an opponent score more than seven points in a given set. Stephenie Ho (Ace), the number two seed and Chow’s teammate on Team BC, also gave a dominant performance to earn her place in the gold medal match on Sunday.
Ho and Chow will face each other a second time on Sunday for the U15 Mixed Doubles final. Chow and her partner Nik Cruz (VLTBC) – also a WCTC Team BC alum – played exactly the type of aggressive game the crowd expected from these top seeds. Ho and her partner, WCTC Team BC alum Nathaniel Franco (Ace), had a bit of a rougher road to the finals. The number two seeds faced a tough match against fellow Team BC teammates Victor Huang (ClearOne) and Stella Seo (HCC), but eventually won out with a 15-21, 21-20, 21-15 victory.
U17 Boys’ Singles top seed Kevin Luo (Ace) smashed through his first two matchups with ease, but only narrowly gained a victory over the unseeded Ben Wang (St. John’s) in the semi finals. After a 21-19, 21-18 win there, Luo will advance to the finals to face number two seed Aaron Zhao (ClearOne), who proved an unstoppable force on the courts during Friday’s matches.
Wendy Zhang (ClearOne), the number one seed in U17 Girls’ Singles, made quick work of her first two matches, playing with the skill and determination crowds have come to expect from the young athlete. In a small upset, number two seed and WCTC Team BC alum Jessica Yuen (St. John’s) was denied a place in the finals after losing to fellow Team BC teammate and 3/4 seed Yoko Ujike (ClearOne), who has really utilized her training from the Team BC program to step up her game in the Provincials.
Adrian Fan (ClearOne) and his partner, WCTC Team BC alum Daryl Yang (SSDCA), smashed their way through the quarter and semi finals to earn a spot in Sunday’s gold medal matchup for U17 Boys’ Doubles. They will face off against 3/4 seeds Steven Lu (RPRO) – another WCTC Team BC alum - and Maric Son (ClearOne), who ousted number two seeds Clarence Liu (Shuttlesport) and Konrad Van Heukelom (VRC) in a heated 21-14, 22-20 match that drew rousing response from spectators.
More WCTC Team BC faces will be seen in the last match of the U17 Girls’ Doubles round robin on Sunday. Currently number one in the standings, Team BC alum Michelle Leung (Ace) and her partner Wendy Zhang finished with a perfect 2-0 record on Saturday. Team BC’s Annie Chow and Jessica Yuen are close behind in second with their own 2-0 record, and have a real chance of snatching gold from Yeung and Zhang on Sunday.
U19 Girls’ Singles top seed Qingzi Ouyang (Ace) delivered the high-octane performance she’s known for in Saturday’s matches. The Canada Winter Games Team BC alum breezed through her first two matchups, never letting her opponents score more than eight points in a given set. Ouyang will face the unseeded Jenna Wong (ClearOne), who toppled number two seed and Team BC alum Kylie Cheng (Ace) in a major upset Saturday afternoon. Both athletes fought hard through three games, but Wong emerged with a 21-17, 13-21, 21-12 victory and the chance to take home gold.
U19 Boys’ Doubles top seeds Simon Cheng (VRC) and Jack Lin (Ace) played some smart, physical badminton to clinch their berth in the finals on Sunday. They’ll face off against 3/4 seeds Jack Chen (RPRO) and Muen Guo, who took down number two seeds Alexis Duval and Nolan Fitzgerald (CBCC) in a rollercoaster 22-20, 21-10 semifinal match Saturday afternoon.
The unseeded U19 Mixed Doubles duo of James Ho and Samantha Zheng (Ace), both members of the Canada Winter Games Team BC, secured a spot in the finals after ousting top seeds Simon Cheng (VRC) and Katie Ngai with a decisive 21-9, 21-18 victory. They’ll be up against number two seeds Antonio Li (ClearOne) and Jenna Wong, who only narrowly made it out of the semi finals after a real nail biter of a match against Jack Lin and Kylie Cheng.
Another pair of unseeded athletes earned a place in the finals for Open Men’s Doubles. Wei Luo and Simon Wu (Shuttlesport) played some terrific badminton on Saturday, and will no doubt present a real challenge to top seeds Adrian Liu and Derrick Ng (ClearOne) on Sunday. Liu and Ng, who are members of Canada’s National Team and were just announced as part of the Canadian contingent headed to the Sudirman Cup, put on a great show for spectators who packed the stands, and will no doubt do the same in Sunday’s finals.
Canadian National Team athlete and soon-to-be Sudirman Cup star Phyllis Chan and her partner Kay Shi (Ace) are unsurprisingly at the top of the standings for Open Women’s Doubles. Team BC’s Kylie Cheng and Qingzi Ouyang are close behind them in second, and may have an advantage going into the final game of the round robin after spending so much time training together for the Canada Winter Games in February. Either way, this match will be one to watch for sure.
Sunday’s gold medal matches begin bright and early at 9:00am. Spectators will not want to miss a minute of the competition, as British Columbia’s very best athletes duel it out on the courts for badminton supremacy. Victory on Sunday not only means gold for these young stars, but the title of Provincial Champion and a new pinnacle of success. It will be an honour to witness.