Badminton – final // reflection three

Badminton end of competitive season. (3)

This season was set up very differently due to the worsening COVID situation. It was quite disappointing looking at the fact that many matches were cancelled so we were not able to compete with other schools, and the season was cut short due to the circuit breaker. However, the coaches were able to arrange matches with the Dover Campus which were fun and had some competitive edge. I think it was still a good chance to get some extra training in and work on drills. 

I got into the B team this year, but I think I was one of the stronger players seeing that I trained with the A team potentials in the previous season. Thus, I also feel it was a bit of a wasted opportunity to go against the most skilled players in our division. To put it in the most straightforward sense, I feel I was at a place where I was one of the higher ranking players in a middle ranking team (B), whereas in previous years I was one of the lower ranking players in the higher ranking team (A). I think each situation brings its own benefits and drawbacks. In my previous experiences, I was able to push myself by trying to catch up with the abilities of my higher skilled team members. However, it was mentally tiring to repeatedly be outskilled or losing to my other team members. On the other hand, my current experience would have allowed me to train with players who may have been at a lower skill level, but compete with players who may be more at my level. Though, this did give me some extra time to finetune my skills and work towards mastery — helping me work towards my goal of wanting to improve my technical accuracy during gameplay. Although I was able to dedicate a lot of training time, I did not have as many chances to put it into practice. It was a short season, and I was awarded as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) which I am very proud of.

It was still definitely a challenge to continue maintaining my wellbeing during the circuit breaker after the season ended, as well as being able to adapt to the changes due to the virus. Sports in particular is such a big part of our life in school, so when there were so many restrictions in place that essentially took it away from us (in other words, since team sports were very difficult to manage) we were required to practice resilience in being able to adapt to the measures in place, and then trying to maintain the role of sport and exercise in our lives at it is so important. I also resonated with this very strongly during the circuit breaker (and I know others did as well) where it was so difficult to maintain habits and consistency with regards to physical health (which directly affects mental health). We all have some part in preventing the spread of the virus as it is a global issue. Although we are all upset about the new regulations, we understand the importance of cooperating and we should be grateful that Singapore is taking action to actually improve the situation and stop the spread. 

This was definitely an interesting season, and although there are some upsetting aspects, there were still some positives and I am quite thankful for being in Singapore during the pandemic as it seems as though they are handling it quite well. On top of hoping the situation with the virus improves, I also wish to have the opportunity to join the badminton team next year, seeing that it will be my senior year!

LO2 – undertake new challenges and developing new skills

LO4 – commitment. showing perseverance and resilience.

LO6 – global value. engaging with issues of global importance.

some circuit breaker workouts