Woosh! Fly birdie (or shuttlecock, some professionals may say). Step into the Shipley Center gymnasium during the spring trimester on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 4:00 and 5:00 pm, and you will be immersed in the art of badminton.

For the first time, Dana Hall offered badminton this year as an option for students’ spring athletic requirement. This offering excited many and quickly became a “completely filled” spring athletic activity according to Cindy Welch, Assistant Director of the Upper School.

Rebecca Kimball, Director of Athletics, Health and Wellness, explained that offering badminton was “inspired by students” who expressed a desire to play. Anastasia Sedunova ‘24 said that “Badminton is such a fun sport! It can go all the way from being a simple summer activity, to being a serious sport.” 

Eliot Ayres, IT Associate, was the coach of the Dana Hall Badminton team. Practice happened in Shipley using portable nets that were pulled out on Tuesdays and Thursdays for the hour-long practice. Sedunova has “Never played competitively, but due to the nature of the game I do get pretty competitive when I play,” which leads to an exciting practice.

Sedunova explained that she was “feeling a bit nervous because some people have done some professional playing, and have only done it for fun. However, I’m excited to bring back the fun!”