A team of five New Zealand para-athletes collectively claimed six medals at the recent 2022 Oceania Para Badminton Championships, held in Melbourne, Australia. Returning athletes, Carrie Wilson (CAN), Marinda Jones (HB) and Oliver Linton (MAN) were looking to improve on their previous performances, in their second Oceania Championships appearance. New athletes, Travis Moffat & Eamon Wood (CAN) undertook their international classification and were looking to test themselves at their first international event.
The standout performance of the event was undoubtedly, the mixed doubles pairing of Oliver Linton and Carrie Wilson who clinched the SL3-SU5 Mixed Doubles title in nail-biting journey up to the final point! The pair, having never previously partnered, opened their campaign, with a narrow three-game loss in the opening round match against Australia’s Caitlin Dransfield and Kenneth Adlawan. The Kiwi pairing continued to improve across their matches, qualifying for the semi-finals following wins in their R2 & R3 matches.
The semi-final match saw Oliver and Carrie meet Australia’s Xay Kinnavong & Amonrat Jamporn. In a marathon three games, it was the Kiwis who held their nerves to progress into the finals with a 20-22, 21-16, 24-22 victory.
The mixed doubles final was a re-match from their round 1 match against Dransfield / Adlawan. Carrie and Oliver were triumphant in three nail biting games, 8-21, 21-13, 25-23.
Carrie claimed a further two silver medals, with finals appearances in the SL4 Women’s Singles and SL3-SU5 Women’s Doubles.
SL4 Women's Singles: Carrie Wilson (NZL) def. by Caitlin Dransfield (AUS) 9-21, 12-21
SL3-SU5 Women's Doubles: Carrie Wilson / Amonrat Jamporn (AUS) defeated Gunson/Vinot (AUS) 21-16, 17-21, 21-17
New Zealand claimed a further two bronze medals, from Oliver in the SL3 Men's Singles and Marinda Jones in the WH1-WH2 Women's Doubles. A commendable mention to debutants, Eamon and Travis, who claimed their first win at an international level, in the WH1-WH2 Men's Doubles.
Notable Results:
| WH1-WH2 Women's Doubles | Marinda Jones / Brooke Holt (AUS) def. Chesire / Gallagher (AUS) | 21-7, 21-7 |
| WH1-WH2 Men's Doubles | Eamon Wood / Travis Moffat (NZL) def. Fitzpatrick / Paddle (AUS) | 21-8, 21-11 |
| SL3 Men's Singles | Oliver Linton def. Danny Ten (PNG) | 21-12, 21-6 |
For the full results from the Oceania Para Badminton Championships, visit Tournament Software.