ODENSE (Denmark): The Danes are hospitable hosts and if the Denmark Open is any indication, next year’s World Championships in Copenhagen will be just as good, if not better.
Denmark have not hosted the world meet since 1999, and Badminton Denmark director of events Brian Bach Noesgaard believes that the whole idea of next year’s world meet is to give everyone – players and fans alike an unforgettable experience.
The 2014 world meet will be held at the Ballerup Super Arena in Copenhagen, which is actually a velodrome.
“Well, we want to make it look like a world championship and give everyone a different experience compared to what they usually get from (other) tournaments,” said Noesgaard.
“Firstly, we’re bringing in a world class chef from the Geranium restaurant, which has two Michelin stars for VIP dining.
“Even the VIPs will have it a little different as they will be placed courtside, right next to the action and we have about 150 tables for that.
“As for the courts, we are proposing to the Badminton World Federation (BWF) that the courts be elevated.
“It’ll be a bit like a boxing arena where the players walk in as though they’re the centre of attention.
“We’ll basically build another layer of floor in order to elevate the courts a little to make it look as though it’s a stage.
“We are also very interested in using show-lights presentation to make the whole viewing experience more memorable.
“Basically we’ll make the whole hall dark and we’ll play around with the lights to make it interesting … something like watching a play.
“The Denmark Open was the testing ground for that because we wanted to see if anyone complained … especially the players when it came to the lighting.
“But so far, the response has been pretty good and no one complained about anything.
“With the Danish Government supporting this event, we thought it’d be a shame if we did not try our best to make it an excellent experience for the fans. Plus, the tickets are rather cheap, too,” added Noesgaard.
Tickets for the world meet went on sale last Friday although the season cards – tickets from day one until the final – which cost roughly 850 Danish krones (RM494) are already sold out.
