Sydney to host Badminton Australian Open Grand Prix Gold

The event will take place in Sydney from next April.

Sports fans could be encouraged to book flights to Sydney next year after the city was chosen to stage the Badminton Australian Open Grand Prix Gold (BAOGPG).

The tournament, which currently takes place in Melbourne, will move to the New South Wales (NSW) capital’s Darling Harbour from April 2012 onwards.

NSW’s major events minister George Souris said Sydney had been the obvious choice as the future host of the competition, which attracts around 300 players from 25 countries.

As well as tempting fans of the sport to jet off on flights to Sydney, the tournament could help to raise the profile of badminton, which is currently played by around 150,000 people across Australia.

This year’s BAOGPG took place in Melbourne in April, with China’s Xin Liu taking the women’s singles title after beating Thailand’s Porntip Buranaprasen in straight sets.

Sixth seed Sho Sasaki of Japan won the men’s title, beating Malaysian star Choong Hann Wong in three sets.

Written by Anthony Nicholson