Sanctioned by the Asian Badminton Confederation and sponsored by the Macao Sport Development Board, the Badminton Federation of Macao held the “Macao 2012 Thomas & Uber Cups Preliminary Round-Asia Zone” on February 12th at the Macao Forum. The Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr. Cheong U, the Secretary of Education of Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao Special Administrative Region Mr. Liu Xiao Hang, the Deputy Commissioner of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Macao Special Administrative Region Mr. Song Yan Bin, the President of the Macao Sport Development Board Mr. Vong Iao Lek, the Deputy Director of Macao Government Tourist Office Ms. Maria Senna Fernandes, Sports Council member Mr. Wan Kwan Lok and Mr. Antóno Fernandes, the Chairman of the Badminton Federation of Macao Mr. Kwong Tat Choi, and the President Ms. Ma Ka May presided at the opening ceremony.
The Macao 2012 Thomas Cup Preliminary Round of Asia Zone is one of the five regional preliminary tournaments for the Thomas Cup. This year in Macao, the Thomas Cup Preliminary Round of Asia Zone was held alongside the Uber Cup Preliminary Round of the Asia Zone. Both Cups are hosted by the Asian Badminton Confederation and are regarded as the most prestigious badminton team event in Asia.
This year, a total of fourteen countries and regions took part in the Thomas Cup Preliminary Round and thirteen participated in the Uber Cup Preliminary Round. Asian badminton powerhouses such as China, Indonesia, Korea, Japan and Malaysia participated, sending a total of 237 athletes to compete. Macao also sent ten male and ten female athletes to participate in the tournament. The seven-day competition commenced on February 13th.
The preliminary rounds ended with the Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Malaysian and Korean teams advancing into the Thomas Cup Final. The teams from Japan, China, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, along with defending champions, Korea went through to the final rounds of the Uber Cup. The finals of the Thomas-Uber Cups will be held in May in Wuhan City, Hubei Province.
