The Badminton World Federation has been forced to withdraw a new dress-code requiring all female players to wear skirts or dresses "to ensure attractive presentation". China, India, Indonesia and Malaysia threw their weight against the new rules.
The organization’s deputy president Paisan Rangsikitpho finally put the controversial issue off the table, meaning the London Games will not see badminton stars in mini skirts."We have shelved the ban (on women wearing shorts)," he said during the Thomas and Uber Cup in Wuhan, China."We just want to encourage women and men players to dress properly. We want them to dress nicely, professionally."For almost a year the BWF were trying to make female athletes to wear skirts, a move which was opposed adamantly by the four major Asian countries’ federations.The ruling, however, does not concern the sport’s referees and technical officials. Last week, the BWF unveiled new, cycling-style shirts for the adjudicators.The controversy echoes similar recent episodes in women's beach volleyball – where the sport’s authorities were fighting a losing battle against athletes’ refusal to wear bikinis – and boxing.