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Badminton is the world's fastest
racket sport. A shuttle can leave the racket at a speed of
332 kph (A Record set in 2005 by China's
Fu Haifeng).
Today's players compete in a lightning-fast
sport which demands constant, highly concentrated actions:
running, jumping, twisting, stretching, running backwards
and striking. Besides explosiveness, quick reflexes and
rapid hand-eye coordination, competitive badminton players
must also possess superb aerobic endurance. In a typical
two-game singles match, top players will cover nearly every
inch of the court and travel more than a mile.
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Competitive badminton is vastly
different from the game played by many with friends and
relatives in the backyard. In fact, the differences clearly
illustrate the difference in the meaning between "game"
and "sport".
Badminton is distinguished from
other racket sports, all of which use a ball of some size,
by two features: the use of a shuttlecock and the fact the
shuttlecock cannot touch the ground during a rally. The
flight characteristics of the shuttlecock and the pace
created by constant volleying combine to make badminton
one of the most exciting sports to play and watch.
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