Co-organised by Sands China Ltd. and the Badminton Federation of Macau in celebration of dual anniversaries
Gathering of top players promises to fuel badminton frenzy
MACAO, Sept. 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Sands China Ltd. and the Badminton Federation of Macau (BFM) are co-organising the Sands China Ltd. Macau Open Badminton 2024 tournament, to be held at the Macao East Asian Games Dome Sept. 24-29, with the support of the Sports Bureau of the Macao SAR Government. The event offers early bird ticket discounts to local residents to bolster the promotion of badminton among the wider community.
A press conference Tuesday at The Londoner Macao announces the Sands China Ltd. Macau Open Badminton 2024 tournament, co-organised with the Badminton Federation of Macau (BFM). The event will be held at the Macao East Asian Games Dome Sept. 24-29, with the support of the Sports Bureau of the Macao SAR Government.
An event of the HSBC BWF World Tour Super 300, the Macau Open Badminton Championships have been held as an annual competition since 2006. Around 400 of the world's top players from 20 countries and regions play in the tournament each year.
Sands China is the first integrated resort operator to jointly organise the Macau Open, in alignment with the company's full support of 'tourism + sports' cross-sector integration and implementing Macao's positioning as a world centre of tourism and leisure. Sands China will also host related community events, where local badminton enthusiasts will have the opportunity to closely interact with elite badminton players, thereby fostering the participation of the local community.
The semi-finals and finals will be live-streamed online on the Badminton World Federation's YouTube channel, "BWF TV," allowing badminton enthusiasts worldwide to witness the superb skills on display in Macao.
Grant Chum, chief executive officer and executive director of Sands China Ltd., said: "Badminton enjoys widespread popularity in Macao. As this year marks the dual celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China and the 25th Anniversary of Macao's Return to the Motherland, we are honoured to host the Sands China Ltd. Macau Open Badminton 2024. This six-day world-class tournament provides both locals and visitors with a chance to savour the city's diverse allure, thereby enhancing the cross-sector integrated development of 'tourism+' and 'sports+' in the city. As the first world-class badminton tournament to be held in Macao since the Paris Olympics, the Macau Open will feature top players such as Zhang Shuxian, ranked 5th globally in women's doubles, and Wang Chilin, the gold medallist in men's doubles at the Paris Olympics.
"A record-breaking number of athletes from 30 countries and regions have signed up to compete for the prestigious titles and we eagerly anticipate the convergence of skilled athletes in Macao, contending for victory and delivering a visually captivating and exhilarating spectacle for the audience. Not only does the tournament provide a platform for local badminton players to shine, but it will also be live-streamed online, enabling global audience to engage in the excitement of the games simultaneously, hence contributing to Macao's reputation as a 'City of Events.'"
As the first world-class badminton tournament to be held in Macao since the 2024 Paris Olympics, the 2024 Sands China Ltd. Macau Open will comprise five events: Men's Singles, Women's Singles, Men's Doubles, Women's Doubles and Mixed Doubles. The total prize money for the tournament is US$210,000 (approximately MOP 1.68 million).
Kong Tat Choi, president of the Badminton Federation of Macau, said: "In celebration of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Macao Special Administrative Region, in order to implement the development direction of a world centre of tourism and leisure, and strive to build a 'City of Sports,' it is our honour to have this tournament be first-ever awarded and jointly organised with Sands China to demonstrate full support for the cross-sector integration of 'tourism + sports.' This is the 15th year for the Badminton Federation of Macau in hosting the Macau Open, and we hope to attract top badminton players and supporters from all over the world to learn more about Macao culture by hosting international high-level competitions and to further promote Macao's tourism industry, local national fitness and diversified development, hoping that all the players and visitors from all over the world to feel that Macao is a veritable and charming international metropolis."
The tournament received applications from 375 players from 30 nations and regions around the world, with 259 qualifying for the tournament. The line-up includes Zhang Shuxian, who is ranked no. 5 in the world in women's doubles; Wang Chilin, who won gold in men's doubles in this year's Paris Olympics; Hong Kong men's singles players Lee Cheuk Yiu and Angus Ng Ka Long; Hong Kong mixed doubles players Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet; young Thai star Ratchanok Intanon; girls' singles world junior champion Tomoka Miyazaki; and Macau Open 2018 and 2019 winner Michelle Li. The tournament will also feature five players from Macao: Pui Pang Fong, Pui Chi Wa, Leong Kok Chong, Vong Kok Weng, and Ng Weng Chi.
The tournament announcement was made Tuesday at a press conference at The Londoner? Macao, attended by Lei Si Leng, acting vice-president of the Sports Bureau of the Macao SAR Government; Selvaamresh Supramaniam, BWF events director of tournament operations; Grant Chum; Kong Tat Choi; Nick Teo, general manager of the competition's equipment sponsor Felet International Holdings; Carolina Vong, secretary-general of the Badminton Federation of Macau; and other prestigious guests.
Tickets for the Sands China Ltd. Macau Open Badminton 2024 tournament are on sale from Sept. 11 through the Macau Ticketing network. Tickets for the Sept. 24-27 matches cost MOP 150, while tickets for the Sept. 28-29 semi-finals and finals cost MOP 400; all tickets are general admission and seating is unreserved. Tickets purchased on HSBC credit cards will receive a 15 percent discount. Additionally, tickets purchased by Sept. 22 will receive an early bird discount of 50 percent for Macao Residents and 20 percent for Non-Residents. Tournament details are available at www.macauopenbadminton.org.mo.
As an integrated tourism and leisure enterprise rooted in Macao for more than 20 years, Sands China's support of the Macau Open badminton tournament is part of the company's corporate social responsibility efforts and its support of 'tourism + sport.' Sands China has sponsored and organised various sporting events over the years and has invited international sports stars to attend tennis and basketball invitationals and training camps, Golf Day and other events, encouraging the public to participate in sports while attracting tourists and athletes from overseas to visit Macao and experience its charm.
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About Sands China Ltd.
Sands China Ltd. (Sands China or the Company) is incorporated in the Cayman Islands with limited liability and is listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (HKEx: 1928). Sands China is the largest operator of integrated resorts in Macao. The Company's integrated resorts on the Cotai Strip comprise The Venetian? Macao, The Plaza? Macao, The Parisian Macao and The Londoner? Macao. The Company also owns and operates Sands? Macao on the Macao peninsula. The Company's portfolio features a diversified mix of leisure and business attractions and transportation operations, including large meeting and convention facilities; a wide range of restaurants; shopping malls; world-class entertainment at the Cotai Arena, The Londoner Arena, The Venetian Theatre, The Parisian Theatre, the Londoner Theatre and the Sands Theatre; and a high-speed Cotai Water Jet ferry service between Hong Kong and Macao. The Company's Cotai Strip portfolio has the goal of contributing to Macao's transformation into a world centre of tourism and leisure. Sands China is a subsidiary of global resort developer Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS).
Established in 1982, the Badminton Federation of Macau has been operating in Macau for over 4 decades and efforts have been made to actively promote and support the long-term development of local badminton and its players. BFM offers technical official training courses (Umpire and Line Judge) and annually invites and hosts world-class umpires to lecture, which helps train a growing number of badminton technical officials with international standards. In 1991, the first international badminton tournament sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation was successfully hosted in Macau and ever since from that, thousands of badminton matches have been hosted in Macau every year. Moreover, since 2006, the Macau Open Badminton tournament has become an annual international badminton sports event, with over 300 international players from more than 20 countries and regions throughout the world coming to Macau to compete in the tournament every year. In the future, BFM will remain committed to popularizing badminton in Macau and promoting it to more local residents.
As the first world-class badminton tournament to be held in Macao since the 2024 Paris Olympics, the 2024 Sands China Ltd. Macau Open will comprise five events: Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles. The total prize money for the tournament is US$210,000 (approximately MOP 1.68 million). Tickets for the Sands China Ltd. Macau Open Badminton 2024 tournament are on sale from Sept. 11 through the Macau Ticketing network.
