FDR has many sports to offer their students, one being Badminton. Badminton in FDR has taken a rise in popularity and has proven to be a successful sport. Although the sport flies under the radar in the U.S., it is up there in popularity at FDR. Badminton is similar to tennis, but instead it’s played with a smaller racket, a higher net, and a shuttlecock.

The Girls Badminton Coach at FDR is Coach Hellman. He is also the boys coach and a Physical Education teacher! When I talked to him, he really believes that this season will be a strong one. According to Hellman,”We started off the season great. We won against Staten Island Tech who were the division champs.” One of the players on the Badminton team also believes this will be a great season. Marcus Ko, a junior at FDR believes the season will go amazing, “Although Staten Island Tech is strong and fast, we were able to beat them which is a huge accomplishment.”

As a coach and player in any sport, the goal is to do well enough and advance to the playoffs. Coach Hellman and Marcus both have that same goal for this season. Coach Hellman explains,”We were rebuilding last season, so it was a rough season.” According to Coach Hellman, he really wants to make playoffs, “This season I hope to make it into the playoffs. Another one of my goals is to help the students have fun and make friends.” Marcus has an additional goal beyond just the playoffs, “I want to improve my skills to prepare for next year. This is my first year playing Badminton, but I still rate my skills a 10/10.”

Every Coach has a reason why they started coaching. Mr. Yellen was the original Badminton coach during FDR’s first season, but now it is Coach Hellman. According to him, he loves the sport, “Badminton was just a gym class in the beginning. I love the sport, and I loved teaching the class. Once I realized there was a group of kids that were interested in actually playing, I knew we would have a strong badminton team once created.”

Although the season started not too long ago, Coach Hellman and Marcus both believe in the team. “So many players are new to playing, but they learn fast and are beating the students who have been playing the sport for some time,” says Marcus. “We have great work ethic. They put the work in and learn quickly,” claims Coach Hellman.

Being on a sports team can teach you many skills. However, you can build many friendships and bonds. Marcus believes the team has a great connection on and off the court. “We are all friendly and chill. We work together to help improve each other and we have no problems,” says Marcus. Coach Hellman believes the biggest thing on a sport is developing friendships. “I’ve seen many friendships build and are still going today,” explains Coach Hellman. He continues, “I am still in connection with all of my players even after high school and they are still friends too. That’s more important to me than winning. This team feels like one big family.”

Good Luck this season Lady Cougars! You are already making us proud!