Steinbach's Kevin Barkman is officially seeded #1 for U23 Boys Singles of Junior & U23 National Championships which will be held in Winnipeg at the U of W's Duckworth Centre April 27 - May 2.
Barkman isn't the oldest player for Manitoba in the U23 category, or the most experienced, but he's had a great competitive year that's earned him enough ranking points to place him #1 among all competitors in the U23 Boys Singles Category.
In a sport that can be dominated by athletes of any height, Kevin stands tall at 6'3" and he plays to use his height to his advantage. With the added height, a player is able to cut off shots to the back with greater ease and hit the shuttle back to the opponent with greater angles, making him tough to defend against.
"Kevin has had a lot of great results this year, and will be using junior nationals as his next platform to hopefully make the national team in the next couple of years", is what Provincial Coach Justin Friesen has to say about this young player from Steinbach. "He has the potential to be on the national team but needs a couple good results first, and being seeded #1 should give him a legitimate shot at winning this important tournament."
Kevin Barkman dreams of competing for Canada at international tournaments and playing against the strongest countries in the world, such as China, Indonesia, Denmark & Malaysia. Although Canada isn't one of the badminton powerhouse in the world, we consistently have players in the top 30, and right now Michelle Li from Markham, Ontario is in the top 15 in the world.
photo by Jason Athayde
Wed, Apr 24, 1:00 PM
Administrative, Professionals, Sales, Full-time
Featured
