The fifth staging of the Jamaica International Badminton Championships, the flagship tournament of the Jamaica Badminton Association (JBA), will be held in the spacious National Indoor Sports Complex over the period March 6-10, 2019.

The tournament was launched at the offices of the Jamaica Olympic Association at 9 Cunningham Avenue on Tuesday.

Players from all over the world will use this tournament to accumulate points in their quest for a birth at the 2020 Olympics and also for World Rankings.

A purse money of US$10,000 has helped to attract some of the best players in the world to the shores of Jamaica in what is expected to be five days of excellent badminton action.

The level 4 International Series tournament on the Badminton World Federation (BWF) calendar, action promises to be fierce and fast in the following events — men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles.

The tournament is sanctioned by the BWF and the Pan Am Badminton Confederation and will be played in full accordance with the laws of badminton and competition regulations adopted by the BWF.

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Denzil Thorpe, who spoke on behalf of Minister Olivia Grange, said: “The public knows by now that the ministry is on a campaign to host international sporting events, so we applaud the Jamaica Badminton Association for the initiative and insight in organising and staging this international championship.

“I am pleased to note that the championship is a level 4 International Series Tournament on the Badminton World Federation calendar and provides the opportunity for the over 40 athletes from 26 countries to accumulate points and improve their ranking as they prepare for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.”

He revealed that the ministry has already given $5-million in support of the tournament with more assistance likely to come.

“These types of championships that not only provide an opportunity for us to show that we can be good hosts, but also provide the well needed exposure for our athletes to compete among the best in the comfort of home and with the support of family and friends. The value of the support already provided for these championships is over $5-million and we are exploring other avenues to support the Association for the successful staging of this event.”

Thorpe also urged other potential tournament hosts to seek the help of the ministry but to do so in good time.

“We want to see successful regional and international tournaments and conferences hosted here. All we ask that in these efforts, the sporting bodies involve the ministry from the get-go. We need to be in on the ground floor of the planning for hosting international events because there are so many ways in which the ministry can help the organisers.”

The President of the Jamaica Olympic Association Christopher Samuda, who also spoke at the launch, also pledged the support of his organisation to the tournament and the support of the sport of badminton for the long run. He suggested that Jamaica will continue to do well in the sport on the international stage based on the level of talent that exists.

Samuda said he was confident that not only will the current crop of athletes do well at the tournament next week, but that the nation would be represented at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.

General secretary of the Jamaica Badminton Association, Antonio Bell, expects a strong showing from the locals.

“I expect a showdown on the compound from March 6-10 from our local players who will be trying to improve their world ranking.”

Gareth Henry and Dennis Coke are among the players expected to carry the hopes of the nation.

The countries that will be represented at this year’s tournament are Jamaica, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Congo, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Guyana, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Ukraine, USA and Wales.