OCAA BADMINTON CHAMPIONSHIPS EXPECTED TO BE A RACQUET

ANCASTER, Ont. - The wait is nearly over for the top badminton players in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) as they prepare to embark on their final journey towards a potential provincial championship.

Redeemer University College plays host to the 2012 OCAA Badminton Championships. The two day event begins on Friday.

The top badminton players from the 2012 OCAA regionals will compete in five events, including men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles.

There will be a new OCAA men's singles champion this season with two-time defending gold medalist Timothy Chiu of George Brown no longer competing at the college level. Humber's Simon Yip and Conestoga's Mike Del Fante, both of whom have won multiple OCAA medals in doubles competition, now look to add a singles title to their respective resumes. Yip won a men's doubles title with Centennial in 2008, followed by a silver medal in 2009. Del Fante won a mixed championship with Cambrian in 2009 and earned silver in men's doubles in 2010. Yip and Del Fante finished 1-2 at the OCAA West regional at Humber.

Guri Singh of Georgian was the top men's singles player out of the OCAA East regional played at Boreal. Others competing in men's singles include George Brown's Ankush Chandwani, Centennial's Ryan Lue and Humber's Leroy Stanisclaus.

Humber's Tracy Wong is back to defend her 2011 OCAA women's singles title, and is coming off a first-place finish in the West regional. Jenna Dupuis of Boreal will make her bid for a singles title having won an OCAA silver and bronze medal in women's doubles the past two seasons. A pair of Redeemer students look to use home court to their advantage, as Katie Roth and Julie Koopmans will also compete in women's singles, along with East regional winner Boryana Yankova of George Brown, and Rebecca Trischler of Georgian.

Reigning men's doubles champion Dayvon Reid has a new partner in 2012. He and Mark Wong have gotten off to a great start for George Brown at the East regional, going undefeated in five matches. Wong won back-to-back bronze medals for Humber in men's doubles after a third place finish in men's singles back in 2009.

Humber's Dustin Mitchell and Johnny Truong were the top men's doubles team at the West regional. Mitchell is a former OCAA bronze medalist in men's doubles with Cambrian. Defending silver medalists Chris Hong and Mohammad Nazimuddin of Mohawk are reunited for another run at a men's doubles crown.

Other duos competing in men's doubles include Stephen Kulanathan and Kevin Ronkiewicz of Centennial, Brad McNeice and Trevor Neville of Georgian, and Jeffrey Chow-Wah and David Georgievski of Seneca.

Defending women's doubles champions Alyssa Woon and Renee Yip of Humber are making their bid to repeat after winning the West regional. Boreal's Kalina Gelinas and Katie Jodouin are the top team coming out of the East regional. Representing Redeemer on its home court are Katherine Harvey and Janelle Koopmans. Other teams competing for a women's doubles title are Li-Ju Chen and Carol Dela Cerna of Seneca, Nicole Wilkins and Ziying Yang of Georgian, and Lisa Tyldesley and Danica Zwep of Fanshawe.

Seneca's Sanjay Ashokkumar has won mixed medals in each of the past two championships, and hopes to add gold to his collection this time around with new partner Patricia Lau. They are the top mixed team coming out of the West regional. Suzy Yan looks to improve on her 2011 silver medal in mixed doubles, partnering with Humber teammate Hadrian Lui. Cambrian's Adam D'Agostino and Kayla Odorizzi were the top mixed team in the East regional. Odorizzi won mixed gold with current men's singles competitor Del Fante in 2009.

Also competing in mixed doubles are Logan Dayus and Maggie Tremblay of Georgian, Kristine Estabillo and Wilson Huynh of George Brown and Luc Su and Karen Williams of St. Clair.

An overall team title will also be awarded, with Humber having won back-to-back OCAA championships. Humber shared the banner with George Brown in 2010.

The gold medalists in each category will move on to represent OCAA at the 2012 Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Badminton Championships, hosted by Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, B.C. from March 1-3.

For live updates throughout the competition, click here.

- OCAA -

ABOUT ONTARIO COLLEGES ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

The Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) is a recognized leader in intercollegiate athletics in the province, dedicated to student athlete and sport development. The OCAA has 31 members sponsoring 16 league and tournament championships.

For additional information please contact:
Josh Bell-Webster
Marketing and Communications
Ontario Colleges Athletic Association
Tel: 416-426-7041
Fax: 416-426-7308
E-mail: bell-webster@ocaa.com