Pictured: Richard Wong, presented with formal acknowledgement certificate at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
Australia’s Richard Wong has celebrated an illustrious technical official career in the badminton world.
Progressing through the ranks, Richard completed one term (since 2017) as a BWF Line Judge, while also umpiring (Oceania Accredited Umpire) at numerous badminton tournaments.
His experiences spans World Championships, Sudirman Cup and SuperSeries Finals, the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games and VICTOR Oceania Para Badminton Championships 2019. Most recently, Richard relished the opportunity to line judge at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games; a bittersweet way to mark his retirement as a BWF Line Judge. As per the BWF criteria, BWF Line Judges ‘retire’ at the age of 65.
To acknowledge his outstanding commitment and contribution to the sport, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) made a formal presentation at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
Reflecting on his time as a BWF line judge, Richard was mostly complimentary of the social aspects and the ability to give back to your favourite sports through alternative ways:
“The singular take I have from this “journey” is that it widens my scope of personal development, friendships, and understanding of the game. My personal improvements come from me getting out of my comfort zone, and these involvements with badminton related activities gave me just that tool”
I have made new friendships and then renewed them – with officials from different countries. It has always been a fascination of mine to see how our interactions evolve over a tournament period – from that of initial hesitations, to enjoying our times together, and the banter thereof. An interesting study in human social behaviours. It is a good journey. I fully recommend it”, says Richard Wong
However, this is not the end for Richard. He has already stated his intention to continue contributing as an Oceania line judge and Oceania Accredited Umpire for the foreseeable future.
