Olympic silver medalist Timur to join Li Ning badminton tourney

Sydney Olympic medalist Minarti Timur and two other former members of the Indonesian national badminton team will be competing in the Li Ning Manila Badminton Tournament 2011, which opens on Saturday at the Yonex Philippines Badminton Club (YPBC) in Mandaluyong City. Timur, who won the 2000 Sydney Olympics mixed doubles silver medal with partner Tri Kusharjanto, will be joined by Rudy Widiaya and Lily Wang in the week-long tournament. Their participation is expected to spice up the action in the Open division. Filipino hopefuls Cassandra Grace Lim, Nikki Servando, Carlo Remo and Patricque Magnaye lead the chase for top honors in the various age categories of the tournament. A total of 1,500 local entries from 10 different regions of the country will be competing in the Juniors under 9, under 11, under 13, under 15, under 17, under 19, Seniors over 19 and Open categories. Former Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) commissioner and 1996 Atlanta Olympian Amparo "Weena" Lim is the tournament director of the inaugural event, which offers a total cash prize of P800,000. "This is a very great way to end the summer with all the juniors, Open and senior players testing their prowess in the court," said Lim. – JVP, GMA News