The No. 1-ranked U16 badminton player in Canada was a smashing success at the Yonex Alberta Junior Championships.
Ty Lindeman of St. Albert served up victories in singles, doubles with Austin Bauer of Calgary and mixed doubles with Takeisha Wang of Edmonton to sweep the provincial finals in Olds recently.
It’s the third triple crown in three straight years and the second at the U16 level for the winner of 13 career provincial titles.
“It was just good to know that I’m still playing well with my partners and maintaining my dominance I guess,” said Lindeman, 15.
The best of the bunch was the come-from-behind 21-23, 21-16, 21-14 squeaker with Bauer against the Calgary duo of Joshua Kryczka and Byron Holcek.
“It was the toughest one of the whole year, so to come into provincials and win it like that was nice,” Lindeman said. “When they started to make a comeback, when it was tied at 20-all and 21-all, it got to our heads a little bit and we just didn’t perform as we should’ve but then in the second and third game we got our rhythm back and we were able to grind it out and win.”
Lindeman and Bauer also competed in U19 doubles and lost 16-21, 18-21 in the final.
The longtime partners squared off for the singles title and Lindeman prevailed 21-8, 21-11.
“It can be weird, but a lot of times it’s more like joking around and it’s less serious but when it really comes down to it it’s just like playing anyone else,” Lindeman said of playing against his partner.
Winning singles was a work in progress throughout the tournament.
“It started off a little bit rough in the first round, just getting use to courts. We were playing in a gym so it’s not really the best venue but you do what you can,” Lindeman said. “As it got nearer and nearer to the finals I started playing better and better and the final wasn’t too bad.”
In mixed doubles Lindeman and Wang beat Bauer and Sarah Beattie 21-16, 21-13 in the final.
“It was pretty good. They gave us a run for our money,” said Lindeman.
He prefers playing mixed doubles than the other two events.
“I enjoy it the most and I do the best at it as well,” he said. “I feel a lot more comfortable at the back with my partner. We’ve been playing together longer than I have with anyone else and we know what we’re going to do.”
In the latest national U16 rankings released March 4, Lindeman and Wang, a Ross Sheppard High School student, are No. 2 in Canada in mixed doubles.
The Grade 10 Paul Kane High School student is also the No. 1 singles player and joins Bauer as the top doubles tandem.
“The rankings help with the confidence a bit and it also helps with getting the better draws so you play weaker players before the stronger ones,” said Lindeman, who has been ranked first or second nationally the last couple of years.
Despite the lofty rankings, Lindeman has yet to win a national gold medal after settling for silver in U14 singles and mixed doubles in 2011 and U16 mixed doubles last year, when he also lost out in the quarter-finals in singles and doubles.
Junior nationals start next week in Saskatoon.
“I’m still striving for my first national title so that’s probably my biggest goal there,” said Lindeman.
He is also determined to make the national team for the fourth straight year for Pan Am Junior Badminton Championships, to be staged in July in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
“To play for Canada means that I’m reaching my goals that I’ve set to make these big tournaments and I’m performing well enough to actually get there,” Lindeman said. “It just feels great to be able represent the country and show off Canada. Meeting all the other players from all the other countries is also great.”
Last year in Sherwood Park, Lindeman medaled for the first time at Pan Am for silver in U17 mixed doubles with Wang.
“We played a really tough opponent (Brazil) and we did pretty good against them,” said Lindeman, who also competed in U17 singles.
This is Lindeman’s last year in U16 at the provincial and national level and in the fall will move up to U19.
“It’s going to be a lot of new guys, so I’m going to try and continue to improve,” said the five-foot-11 striker who trains four days a week during 90-minute sessions at the Royal Glenora Club. “The one thing I’ve been working on a lot is the smash, just so I can finish off the rally. It just saves energy in the long run.
“I can hit pretty hard too and that always helps. I’m bigger than a lot of the guys, which gives me that little advantage of being able to get around the court and get their shots back.”
Lindeman was raised in a badminton family and started bashing birdies at a young age.
“It’s a real fun sport. If you’re good in badminton, normally you can do most of the other sports because you have the hand-eye coordination and the endurance and all that good stuff.”
