MANDEVILLE, Manchester — Long before players such as Gareth Henry, Geordine Henry and Samuel Ricketts became notable Jamaican names in badminton, they were part of the Ranger’s Badminton Academy at deCarteret College.

Founder of the Academy Howard Ranger said the organisation was established in 1995 and players are often introduced to the sport at the preparatory and primary level.

Some players, he said, make it to the national level and have the opportunity to represent Jamaica.

The brother-sister team of Gareth and Geordine who was introduced to the sport at Ranger Academy at seven and 10 years old are currently in Glasgow, Scotland competing at the Commonwealth Games.

They have held the number one titles in Men’s and Women’s Singles nationally for many years.

Samuel Ricketts who has been steadily making strides in the sport and doing well on the international scene is among other Ranger team members now at the junior Pan-American Championships in Guatemala.

Although interested in building professional talents, Ranger says he also has great appreciation for virtues such as the camaraderie and discipline that comes with being involved with the sport.

The commitment and team building efforts, he said, has enabled badminton players to garner life skills and do well academically.

With the assistance of coach Dave Thompson and marketing officer for Ranger Academy , Renee Smith, work is being done to get more participants and dispel notions that badminton is a sport for the elite.

“The more people participate in the sport, the more chance we have of finding the professional player because it is based on numbers. Everyone can participate. One of the things that we have to accept is that not everybody is going to be professional. Even if you don’t end up to be a great badminton player, if you stick with it you will be fit,” said Thompson who now resides in Mandeville but has lived and coached badminton part-time in England .

He believes that badminton is a “family sport” and parents and children alike can take part.

“The kind of energy that children in Jamaica have is just second to none. What they lack is not the will but the opportunity,” he said.

Thompson said that Ranger Academy is known for spending a lot of time working on the fitness level of players and introducing them to the “fundamentals” of the game.

He said that many of the top badminton talents in Jamaica were nurtured at Ranger Academy .

Some of the approaches to strengthen the reach of the sport now in place, according to Smith, include igniting public awareness through talks about badminton in schools and organising exhibition matches at suitable venues.

She said that with more sponsorship the efforts that are being made can be expanded.

The academy’s founder has hopes of seeing a badminton team representing Jamaica at the Olympic Games in the near future.