Jayce
The 2024 All England Open Badminton Championships are set to take place from March 12-17. As the oldest badminton tournament, established in 1899, the All England Open has created countless unforgettable memories and produced numerous badminton legends over its 125-year history. Fans eagerly anticipate this annual event.
This year’s All England Open is particularly significant as it is one of the final Olympic qualifying events before the Paris 2024 Olympics. However, fans were shocked to learn that the tournament might replace its traditional green flooring, used for over a century, with the gray flooring shown in the picture.
Upon this news being reported by international media, fans voiced their concerns. From the images, the gray court with white lines does not provide strong contrast, which could cause players to misjudge their shots.
Gray is a neutral color, not offering the stark contrast of green, which is favorable for photographers and videographers capturing the event. However, since badminton shuttlecocks are white, fans worry that this light-colored flooring could affect players’ visibility and judgment.
Many international fans expressed their disapproval, with comments such as, “Are you kidding?” “The shuttlecock will disappear,” “Please revert to green,” and “Whose bad idea was this?” Some even joked, “Why not use black flooring?”
Nonetheless, some fans support the All England Open committee’s decision for a change but suggest that the court lines should be in darker colors like black or yellow to aid line judges in clearly seeing the shuttlecock.
