2001-2005: With innovation into the new millennium

Whether it’s high-speed measurement, a dedicated website or a hairdressing salon in the foyer: in the newly dawned 21st century, the Swiss Open shows that it is more than just an ordinary badminton tournament.

Linda Harzenmoser

The new millennium begins with a number of firsts for the Badminton Swiss Open: A new counting system will be trialled for the first time (5 sets to 7 points) with the aim of showing the audience more exciting matches. A high-speed measurement system for the players' strokes will also be installed for the first time: The installation, set up in collaboration with the Swiss army, measures speeds of over 300 kph. Furthermore, the Swiss Open now has its own website and can therefore present itself on the Internet at www.swissopen.com. In sporting terms, the Asian players begin to dominate, and the newly built neighbouring St. Jakob-Park is opened.

In 2002, the tournament is characterised by the new advertising presence with the yellow-orange shuttle that floats through the hall and adorns all the logos. A wide variety of nations take part in the tournament, and the decision to reduce the prize money in favour of investments in infrastructure, technology and the Internet pays off: The Badminton Swiss Open's image boost is huge. One year later, the world federation decides that the old counting system should be retained after all. However, this does not change the tournament itself, and in certain disciplines the entire top 20 of the world rankings are represented in Basel in 2003.

With the upcoming Olympic Games in Athens in 2004, the media interest in the Badminton Swiss Open is be even greater. For the first time, media representatives from Asia, especially China, are also attending the tournament. Due to the ongoing qualification for the Olympic Games, all the world number 1s are in the Swiss Open tableau this year. Almost all the titles go to China, including to world star Lin Dan – Korea can only stand up to the Chinese athletes in the mixed doubles.

In 2005, the tournament remains a popular event in the badminton world, with players from as many as 32 countries taking part. Other memorable events include the promotional match featuring the Basel band ‘Lovebugs’ and the free hairdressing service at the Wilson stand in the foyer. The keyword Wilson also shows a promising future: from 2006, the US sporting goods manufacturer Wilson will be the title sponsor of the – newly named – Wilson Badminton Swiss Open.