In the year 2001, Former Olympian Darryl Yung had quit his office job so as to open up a Richmond sports centre devoted exclusively to badminton. Just in three successive years, the demand for court space augmented and he ended up opening a second centre.

Yung, who contended in the mixed doubles at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, projected the mounting requirement for badminton court space in Richmond. And now he holds controls and coaches at the two centers.

"There's no shortage of recreational players. It’s a matter of not enough places to play”, said Yung.

But Richmond is not just a place for entertaining badminton players. From Tuesday to Sunday, the city is due to host a chief tournament, the Yonex Canada Open, at the Richmond Olympic Oval. More than 250 privileged players from 33 countries will participate to win $50,000, the biggest cash prize for a badminton competition in Canadian record, according to tournament spokeswoman Jessy Sung.

Sung said that badminton's esteem had grown in Richmond in recent years. While there was only one gym other than the community centers, now there are five.

Yung said that badminton had settled in Richmond because of curiosity from the large Asian community, who had known about the sport from overseas. Yung coaches more than 500 students each week at his Richmond centers, ClearOne Leslie and ClearOne Browngate.