1. What do you miss most about Penn?
People from my badminton family! Badminton for 3 times a week! All-nighter at VP. Midnight trips to fro-gro. Free Laundry. And 牛腩饭from kings wok.

2. Who is the most memorable person from the badminton team?
Former player: Mindy! Played a lot of games together; very skilled player & a wonderful person. A great friend. Plus I will be bumping into her for the next 4 yrs, so ya, will certainly remember her =).
Current player: Jimmy! Most dedicated member of the team. Highly skilled and a good coach. Has great taste in ramen. Now if only we were able to convince him to start playing 3D games, he could become even more memorable

3. If you had to choose a new mascot for our school, what would it be?
Mockingbird

4. Finish the phrase: Eat, sleep, _____
Biochem + Anatomy

5. Please discourse on how badminton is related to your future profession (surgeon).
Badminton granted me a deeper understanding of the structure and working mechanics of the human arm. This knowledge could be invaluable in the future when I operate on patients who need hand/arm/shoulder surgeries.

6. What should people on the team avoid doing?
Run off before practice end. Dinner after badminton is the best time to bond w/ your fellow teammates, and you do NOT want to miss that =).

7. If you could change the game of badminton, is there anything that you would change?
Make the net 3 inches higher, just to benefit taller people like me. Perfect otherwise.

8. What’s up mang?
Yo wahssaap mannggg!!! Chilling on da courrrrt manggg! Gotta smack that bird from behind into that mang’s face manggg.

9. Finally, we’ve all wondered. What were you thinking the instant that famous picture was taken?
Darn.. I missed such a good opportunity to hit Daphnee’s head. She won’t be so lucky next time!

2. Recently, several inappropriate pictures have cropped up on the internet involving you and a bag of Chex Mix. The badminton world wants to know, what is your relationship with with Chex Mix? Is it the secret behind your superior performance/beastliness?
Chex-mix — the best snack in the US, particularly the cheese flavored one! had a love-hate relationship with chex mix, cos i like it so much but it had caused me terrible sore throat :P hmmm it doesn’t have anything to do with my performance on the court, though. Penn Badminton’s team spirit is the secret of my superior performance, if any. :D

3. Will there be anymore badminton in your life after Penn? Sho shaid :(((
Yes of course! but i highly doubt that i can find a team like Penn Badminton! sho shaid :(((

4. What is life without spicy food?
Uhh kinda miserable. You guys know how crazy i am with spicy food :D I even bought a big jar of hot oil from Beijing couple times lol

5. What advice would you give to someone aspiring to be the next Devi by taking 10 classes per semester, doing a dual degree, and still finding time for badminton?
Hmm, btw I didn’t take 10 courses per semester! I don’t really have any particular advice, just remember to balance your life :D

6. If you met two really hot guys who are perfect in all aspect except for one each: Guy A could not handle the tiniest amount of spicy food (he has a genetic defect which causes him to have a fever every time he eats anything contaminated with hot sauce); guy B could not stand badminton (he got owned so badly as a kid that he still has lingering shadow of his failure past, which causes him to cry every time he sees a badminton court, or a racquet, or a birdy). Both guys love Chex-Mix (and they swear to leave the cheese triangles for you). Which guy would you go out with and why?
Easy one! I would choose Guy A! My priority is pretty clear; first is badminton, then everything else haha

7. What is your favorite shot after your opponent executed a near perfect drop to the front left corner? (game- singles) Why? What if it is XD?
cross-court net drop for singles! cos it’s the easiest for me haha… Hmm if it’s in XD, the shot is Jimmy’s :D lol cos it’s even easier haha

8. When do you think we (the badminton family) will have our first reunion? how many kids would you have by that time? =P
Hmm maybe this summer?! lol i should have no kids yet!

9. What’s one thing that you wish we did more during your years @ Penn? Why?
Do more crazy fun stuff so we can create more memories to laugh for during our reunion :D

10. Who do you think will be the first one getting married in our undergraduate team?
Our beloved Ming-Yeh Lee :P

Questions courtesy of our members

4. Most memorable badminton experience?
At Penn, the best badminton experiences all happened off the court – overtaking half the tables at Koreana, watching 2am movies in Huntsman, running around Philly, hearing stories about Bento boxes for the homeless… oh nostalgia! Outside of Penn, the badminton camp I went to this summer in China was really memorable as well. Over a month-long period of training five hours a day, six days a week, I made wonderful friends, received coaching from amazing coaches, played against (and often lost to) members of China’s #1 provincial team, and sweat like a pig (I didn’t even know pigs could sweat that much) in a/c-free gyms. Awesome indeed.

5. Most ingenious money-making scheme?
Buying and selling textbooks online. In college I often bought a number of books from really cheap sources, used them for a semester, and resold them in like-new condition for higher prices. I think I made over $1000 in profits. Actually, it wasn’t that ingenious… it just had really high returns for the minimal amount of work I put in.

7. Would you rather have a super smash or tremendous endurance?
A super smash (haha isn’t that a video game?) sounds enticing, but without endurance it would have only a limited effect. I don’t think it helps to have one strong smash and then be too tired to smash again. I’d prefer tremendous endurance.

9. What advice would you give to our new and returning players for the new season?
Unbeknownst to many, the “play” in Penn’s motto “Work hard, play hard” actually refers to badminton. So go to practice – it’s a nice way to let loose, even on a Friday evening when there may seem to be more attractive alternatives. And if you’re serious about getting better, discipline yourself to do drills instead of settling for games all the time. To the new players – sorry I won’t be there to cheer you on, but welcome to a fantastic community of amazing people and lifelong friends!

10. How do you think badminton in the UK will compare to here in the US?
I hear badminton is stronger across the pond. It certainly has a longer history over there. I’ll get back to you on this in a couple months. :)

13. If you can be any animal (ponies, dolphins, and unicorns excluded), what would you be?
A panda. They get an enormous, custom-made cake for their birthday (at least at the zoo – http://www.upi.com/News_Photos/gallery/Features/Birthday-Cake-for-Tai-Shan/2082/), and they’re loved by lots of people. (But why you gotta hate on the dolphins?)

14. If everyone here donated money to build new badminton courts at Penn, where on campus would you like the new courts to be built and why?
The field next to Rodin would be nice. It would shorten my 15-minute walk to Hutch (25 minutes post-practice) to a 2-minute one, which is especially attractive in the winter. The same goes for most upperclassmen. Also, since so many students live in the high rises, we’ll get greater visibility and more people will come check out the team. And by the way, “everyone here” should have special emphasis on Wharton/Engineering (*cough* Wall Street) people. College kids are poor because we’re out to save the world.

15. What’s your favorite badminton snack/food?
Bananas, apples, and granola bars = best tournament food, hands down. As for post-tournament celebration, nothing beats a scrumptious team dinner.

16. What happened to questions 1, 3, 6, 8, 11, and 12?
They were lame…

Author’s note: Question 16 was written and answered by Clara. Oh Clara…

2. Why did you start playing badminton?
Initially, my older sister dragged me to badminton camp because she wanted to try out for the high school team. Reluctantly, I went with her. I thought it was stupid to do footwork and racquet swings all day, but I grew to love the sport after a few months.

3. Who’s your favorite player?
Devi!!!! cuz she’s so tiny but has so much energy.

4. What is the most memorable experience you have had throughout your numerous years on the Penn Badminton Club?
Meeting and bonding with all the awesome people on the team was one of the best parts of my Penn experience. I love all of you!!! Cooking 9 course meals and staying up until 4am was great.

5. Will you be donating money to our club in the future?
Sure, we’ll probably have to wait a decade or two until I have a real job and start making money. It’ll be easier trying to extract money from the investment banker and consultant alumni :P

6. So what’s your plan for the next ten years?
I’ll probably be in med school and residency.

7. What would you say to those who are considering doing a PhD/MD program like you will be doing?
It’s pretty awesome so far… but what do I know, I just started a month ago. It’s definitely a long haul, so choose your school wisely, and make sure they have a badminton club!

8. What’s worse: giving up badminton for the rest of your life or giving up chocolate?
This is an awful question… I’d probably just rather die.

9. Where’s Waldo?
In Peter Thai’s bathroom.

10. Any parting advice for the underclassmen?
Train hard! Even though footwork and conditioning are not the funnest, it all pays off when you bring home the trophies :D Most importantly, have fun and bond with your teammates!

2. How long have you been playing?
Elementary school through middle school. Did squash in high school because they sadly didn’t have a badminton club.

3. Who’s your favorite player?
SUPER DANNNNN!

4. If a genie granted you three wishes on the condition that each is about badminton, what would you wish for?
That my legs would move, that my legs would move quicker, and that I’d actually get to the ball…

5. Describe teammate Sofia Liou in five words or less.
Sofia is bubbly and smiley!

6. Now, do you typically put a hand to your hips in between rallies?
Yes, definitely.

7. Funniest badminton story?
First ever badminton match in Hong Kong – lucky enough to play the first seed, got finished in less than 5 minutes. The girl later became my badminton teammate in middle school! Good thing she did not remember me.

8. Have you ever broken a bone?
No, and not hoping nor planning to…

9. What do you see yourself doing in four years?
Graduating from Penn and working back home

10. Will you be buying an iPad?
No wayyyy

There you have it folks. Nominate the next featured player by sending an email to featuredplayerpennbadminton.com