Badminton Canada is gearing up for a thrilling display of skill and determination as the Junior National Team prepares to compete at the Pan Am Junior 2024 Championships in Aguascalientes, Mexico. Scheduled from July 11 to 19, this prestigious event will feature young athletes from across the Americas, highlighting the vibrant talent pool within our region.
The Pan Am Junior 2024 Championships will see the Canadian contingent face off against competitors from 16 countries in the Individual Event and 7 teams in the Team Event, including nations such as Brazil, Mexico, USA, and others from across the Americas.
Led by the National Head Coach Mike Butler, ChPC, the tournament will be their first exposure to competition outside the country for most players. According to Butler, “It is, as well, the first time they get to represent Canada, and anytime you get a chance to wear Team Canada colours, it is a great honour. It also gives them a chance to gauge their abilities to those in the PanAm region”. The National Coach is looking forward to seeing how the junior athletes will do in Mexico, “PanAm Junior for our U19 team is a great prelude to the World Junior Championships in China in October”, said Butler.
The players will be supported as well by a dedicated team of seven experienced coaches:
Jennifer Lee, Pan AM Junior Head Coach, Lees’ Badminton Training Centre, ON
Chatal Jobin, Team Leader & Event Coach, Club TBC, QC
Kevin Cao, Event Coach, KC Badminton Club, ON
Cathy Chau, Event Coach, Mandarin Badminton, ON
Grace Gao, Event Coach, Gao’s Badminton, AB
Edwin Iriawan, Event Coach, CAN Badminton, ON
Jun Ouyang, Event Coach, Elite Badminton, ON
The event will witness the Canadian athletes participating in both the U19 Team Event (July 11-13) and the Individual Event across four age categories (U13/U15/U17/U19) from July 15-19, 2024.
"We are impressed with the talent and potential of our Junior National Team this season," remarked Mike Luck, High-Performance Manager at Badminton Canada. "We have some incredible Junior players ready to impact the international stage seriously. With our quality of players, there is no doubt there are future Olympians on this team. We look forward to delivering quality high-performance programming to support our next generation of players."
Stay tuned as Badminton Canada continues to elevate the sport, foster young talent, and strive for excellence at the Pan Am Junior 2024 Championships.
Meet the players here.
Photo: Joseph Yeung