Ananova:

A guide to the Olympic sport of Badminton

Courts have dimensions of 6.1m x 13.4m. The net is 1.55m high at the centre. Courts have a clearance on all sides of 2m and a ceiling height of 12m.

Scoring matches are played to the best of three sets and sets are won by the first player (or pair) to reach 15 points. For women's singles it is 11 points.

An exception arises when the score reaches 13-all or 14-all (or 9-all or 10-all in women's events), where the first player or players to reach the relevant score can choose to "set" or not "set" the game.

If the game is "set", the score is called to love-all and the first player or players to reach the "set" score wins the game.

At 9-all, the "set" score is 3 points; at 10-all the "set" score is 2 points; at 13-all the "set" score is 5 points; at 14-all the "set" score is 3 points.

Only the serving side can score a point, so winning and keeping the right to serve is of fundamental importance in badminton.

History

Badminton was a demonstration sport for the Olympic Games in 1972, making its Olympic debut in 1992 at the Barcelona Olympic Games.

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