IMG and JVC propel badminton to greater heights in Philippines

One company that can proudly claim to be instrumental in the badminton boom in the Philippines is IMG, which is behind the country's major tournaments like the JVC Badminton Championships.

Princess Galura, managing director for the Philippines of IMG, can speak volumes of how their company and JVC have propelled the popularity of badminton in the Philippines that has created a new industry with investments now reaching several hundreds of millions of pesos.

Galura said that IMG is basically doing event management in the Philippines and that they are not exclusively doing sports activities only. She however speaks fondly of badminton despite getting very little time to play the sport, due to a successful partnership with JVC.

"We have helped create a new industry and many people are now employed because of it," Galura said.

She explained that the badminton boom has resulted to the construction of several playing arenas around the country that entailed investments of several million for each.

Aside from that, many others are also making money from those employed by the badminton centers to the businessmen selling equipment and many other things related to the sport.

In Cebu alone, badminton courts have sprouted around the metropolis while many existing sports facilities had expanded their badminton courts to accommodate the rapidly growing number of players.

"Another contribution of badminton, of course, is the health consciousness of the Filipinos."

She also said that one reason that made badminton popular is the fact that it is a social sport where people can meet and talk after games and players can compete with those from the same level.

IMG is currently running the regional circuit of the JVC Badminton Championships, which started six years ago at the Glorietta Mall in Makati.

She said that JVC is the longest running sponsor of badminton and this has already become part of the company image.

Aside from badminton, IMG has also ventured into organizing other sporting events in the malls, because this is where the sponsors would want to be.

"The mall-based activities are just starting points just like what we did for badminton, then we slowly continue those that would have a good following."

Aside from the JVC Championships, IMG is also running the Philippine Open Badminton Championships next month at the ULTRA in Pasig and the MVP (Manuel V. Pangilinan) Cup at the Araneta Coliseum in July.

"The Philippine Open is the first International Badminton Federation (IBF) sanctioned event, which means that participants can earn IBF points that would reflect on their world rankings," Galura said. - NLQ