Pal Chawla named to
national badminton
Hall of Fame
By Scott Taylor,
Photos courtesy of Ryan Giesbrecht at Badminton Manitoba
In another one of those, “It’s about
time,” moments, Winnipeg’s Pal
Chawla has been inducted into the
Badminton Canada Hall of Fame.
The fact that he was the only
recipient of the honour this year was
significant. After all, he’s given nearly
50 years to the sport in Canada. At
some point, you have to figure his
induction would become a no-brainer.
Badminton Canada formally
inducted Chawla into its Hall of Fame
as part of the 2016 YONEX Canadian
Badminton Championships that
ran from February 3-6. The official
induction ceremony took place during
the tournament banquet back on
Saturday, Feb. 6 at the Winnipeg Winter
Club.
“My brother Pal Chawla has been my
mentor as a coach,” said the legendary
player/coach Archie Chawla recently.
“It is while working as the assistant
coach under Pal, from l974 to l981,
where I grew as a professional. His
attention to detail and commitment
to athletes and members were some of
the finer qualities I inherited from him.
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Pal is disciplined and takes pride in
everything he does. He is always ready
to step forward to contribute.”
Pal was born in Amritsar, India in
1942 and moved to Canada in 1967. He
has been directly involved in the sport
of badminton as a player and coach
for 61 years. In fact, even though he
retired in 2011 after a remarkable 40
years as the Badminton Professional at
the Winnipeg Winter Club, he’s working
right now as a volunteer member
of the 2016 YONEX Senior National
Badminton Championships Organizing
Committee.
One of Chawla’s many players
summed up the thoughts of many in
remarking: “When I look back over
the past decade and a half, the most
important lessons that Pal taught
me actually have nothing to do with
badminton. Pal taught me about hard
work, respect, passion, teamwork
and attitude. Apart from being my
coach, I view Pal as a good friend and
outstanding role model.”
A certified NCCP Level 4 coach
and former international-level player
himself, Chawla took brief time-outs
during his four decades at the Winter
Club to lead the coaching staff for
Manitoba’s badminton teams at the
Canada Winter Games in 1975 and
again in 1999.
“With a passion for badminton
and for learning, Pal brought equal
dedication to players ranging from
recreational players all the way to those
international and Olympic-bound,”
said Ryan Giesbrecht, the executive
director of Badminton Manitoba.
“One cannot think of badminton in
Manitoba without thinking of Pal
Chawla. His contributions over the
last almost 50 years – as player, coach,
mentor, board member and volunteer
– have left an indelible stamp on the
sport, the players and even the fans.
Coach, teacher, role model and mentor
to others, Pal still plays the occasional
game at The Winnipeg Winter Club.”
The fact that he
was the only
recipient of the
honour this year
was significant
From 1967-70 he was the head
professional at the Wildewood Club
and then, for a year, he went west to
become the head pro at the Waskana
Winter Club in Regina and served as
the head coach of Saskatchewan’s
Badminton Team for the 1971 Canada
Winter Games. In late 1971, he moved
back to Winnipeg, took over at the
Winter Club and spent the next 40
years teching the game, organizing
club tournaments and leagues, hosting
events – including national junior and
senior tournaments – promoting and
growing participation in the sport of
badminton and running programming
for players ranging from recreational to
high-level competitive.
During his 40-year tenure at
the Winter Club, Chawla coached
numerous top ranked junior and
adult players including Olympians
Jamie Dawson (Atlanta l996) and
Kara Solmundson (Sydney 2000). He
was even the assistant coach of Team
Canada at the All England Open and
Thomas Cup and Uber Cup in 1999.
He was recognized as Sport