Badminton Australia is pleased to announce the official launch of the Sydney Performance Hub, a key initiative in the national high-performance strategy.
Developed in partnership with NBC and Badminton NSW (BNSW), the Hub will play a critical role in the growth and development of elite badminton in Australia. Ongoing training sessions will be held twice weekly, reinforcing a structured and consistent training environment for emerging and established athletes.
The NBC coaching team will be led by Brian Koentjoro (Head Coach) and Jennifer Tam (Assistant Coach/Manager) who will work closely with Badminton Australia’s Head Coach Leanne Choo to ensure full alignment with the national high-performance strategy.
The Hub will focus on developing a world-class training system, enhancing technical and tactical capabilities, and addressing performance gaps to lift the standard of play nationally.
“This is a significant milestone for the entire Australian badminton community,” said National Head Coach Leanne Choo.
“The performance Hubs will provide athletes with high-quality sparring, coaching, and a training environment they need to compete at the highest level.
“We are excited to partner with NBC to bring this vision to life.”
Badminton NSW President Carolyn Toh said the Sydney Performance Hub would provide a unified and impactful development pathway for players.
“We’re proud to support a system that will nurture talent and raise the overall standard of athletes in Australia” she said.
“This is about building a sustainable high-performance culture in NSW. The Performance Hub will assist us in building a clear and cohesive pathway for players to reach their full potential, both domestically and internationally.”
NBC Founder Joe Qiao said the hub created the foundations for long-term success and ensured athletes have the tools and environment to thrive.
“The Performance Hub model allows us to foster a high-performance culture where athletes can access elite-level coaching, consistent sparring, and tailored development pathways,” he said.
The Performance Hub model aims to establish mini-centralised training environments in each state, with the goal of having a dedicated hub in every region to raise the collective standard of badminton across the country. This vision brings together the best players within each state to train and spar regularly, creating a more competitive and high-performance environment.
With BA’s new structural change from a hybrid to a decentralised model, creating Performance Hubs is a strategic initiative to build a more sustainable and effective high-performance system across Australia.
This collaborative approach ensures that each Hub operates with a consistent standard of excellence, bridging the gap between national and international performance levels.
One of the key performance gaps identified in our What It Takes to Win (WITTW) framework is the lack of sparring opportunities. Establishing these hubs addresses this gap by strengthening daily performance environments and creating surroundings where athletes can consistently push and challenge each other.
Badminton Australia remains committed to strengthening its national network of Performance Hubs to build a sustainable pipeline of talent for international competition.
Stay tuned next week for the official announcement of the Melbourne Performance Hub that is being launched in collaboration with Badminton Victoria.
To learn more about Badminton Australia’s High-Performance Program, head to: https://badmintona.ndweb.dev/high-performance-pathway/
