New Delhi, June 11 (IANS) Officials from the Badminton World Federation (BWF) visited the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi for a routine inspection of the Gymnastics Centre, the proposed venue for the upcoming BWF India Open 2026 and the BWF World Championships 2026.

The BWF delegation included Selvaamresh Supramaniam, Koh Wa Cheng, Venugopal A. Mahalingam, Jessy Sung, and John Adamson, while the Badminton Association of India was represented by Honorary General Secretary Sanjay Mishra, Girish Natu, Gautam Mahanta, and Manoj Kumar Singh.

The visit underscores India’s growing role as a key destination for elite badminton events, as it is set to organise the 30th edition of the mega event, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) informed in a release on Wednesday.

The inspection focused on reviewing infrastructure, venue preparedness, and logistical planning as part of early-stage preparations for the two marquee global badminton events.

This will be the second time that India will be hosting the BWF World Championships, having hosted it in Hyderabad in 2009.

Starting in 1977 in Malmö, Sweden, the BWF World Championship was initially a biennial event till 2004 when it was converted into an annual event except in Olympic years. The 2025 edition will be held in Paris, France, while India will host the 2026 edition. The 28th edition of the mega event was held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2023.

The India Open is a BWF Super 750-level badminton event and India’s premier international badminton competition, which is held annually at the KD Jadhav Hall in the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex.

The tournament’s inaugural edition took place in 1973, but it was then discontinued in 1997, only to be resurrected in 2008, when it became part of the Gold level of the international badminton Grand Prix. In 2022, it was elevated to Super 750 status, making it India’s biggest badminton tournament.

–IANS

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