Badminton New Zealand Expands Its Coaching Workforce at Four-Day National Workshop
Badminton New Zealand has completed a successful National Shuttle Time Tutor Workshop at Badminton Waitakere, running from 30 April to 3 May — a concentrated four-day programme aimed at growing the pool of qualified coaches capable of delivering badminton education in New Zealand schools.
What is Shuttle Time and Why Does It Need Tutors?
Shuttle Time is the BWF's flagship school badminton programme, designed from the ground up to introduce the sport to children who have never held a racquet. Simplified equipment, smaller courts, and structured progressive drills make it accessible in any school gym, regardless of existing facilities or teacher expertise.
The programme's reach depends entirely on having enough trained tutors — coaches qualified not just to deliver sessions themselves, but to upskill other teachers and coaches at the local level. Without that tutor network, Shuttle Time stays contained. With it, the programme can scale across every region in the country. Badminton Waitakere, one of New Zealand's most established associations, provided the ideal environment for this training.
Why More Tutors Means More Players Tomorrow
Every tutor trained at this workshop becomes a multiplier. One qualified tutor can introduce Shuttle Time to dozens of schools and hundreds of students over the following years. The children playing in those school halls today are the club players, the regional competitors, and potentially the national representatives of the 2030s. Grassroots investment of this kind is quiet, unglamorous work — but it's where every strong national programme is built from the ground up.
From the School Hall to the Club Court
For clubs across New Zealand, a stronger Shuttle Time network means a steadier stream of young players arriving with basic skills already in place. If your club runs junior programmes, the coaches trained at this workshop may be the ones feeding players into your sessions in the years ahead — a direct link between national development investment and local club growth.
Quick Facts
- Programme: BWF Shuttle Time — school badminton initiative
- Event: National Shuttle Time Tutor Workshop