Despite being on campus since 1972, the IU badminton club has found it hard to increase membership. \nBut through combined efforts of current President Qin "Arthur" Zhu, former Vice President Hin "Eric" Tsoi, as well as current Vice President Feng-Ru Sheu, the club has begun to prosper. With the addition of a Web site -- www.iub.edu/~badmin -- and the annual IU Badminton Open, the club has attracted attention from a variety of IU students.\nAt the tournament at the Student Recreational Sports Center last October, more than 50 members of the badminton community at IU, as well as those coming from The University of Illinois and Purdue University, participated and had a great time, Zhu said. It both increased awareness of the club and caused a spirited competition among the participants. \nTo recognize the hard work of the club officers, Recreational Sports boosted the club's spirits by honoring it with a "Class B" ranking within the intramural activities. Zhu said to have a great tournament next fall, the club board realizes the need for better organization and enthusiasm \nJim Heersma, a member of the teaching staff for the medical sciences program, is currently the staff advisor for the badminton club. Heersma said he feels encouraged by the club's recent efforts but realizes that more is needed. \nHeersma said the 2003 IU Open was a good way to promote the sport, which has more than 2,000 years of history under its belt, some historians believe. \n"With more interest, people in the club, as well as next year's officers, will be more experienced," he said. \nSheu was recently certified with the ability to umpire official badminton matches at a conference in Terre Haute. She feels through hard work, determination and good leadership, the club can accomplish great things. She said compared to last year's club, this year's group is a lot more relaxed and has learned to know each other as friends, not just as participants. \n"The most important thing for the club is that everyone is satisfied and that everyone stays active," Sheu said. \nIn order to stay active and to have more enthusiasm, the club would like to garner more members. If interested in playing badminton here in Bloomington, go to the club's regular meeting hours from 6 to 9 p.m. Fridays at the SRSC and Sundays from 3 to 5 p.m. at the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation. Current membership dues are at $5 for those who have a racket and $10 dollars for those who don't. Visit the club's Web site at www.iub.edu/~badmin for more information. \n-- Contact staff writer Andrew Smith at asmithii@indiana.edu.
