Badminton took centre stage this National Day season as OneSG61 with Antica turned Perennial Business City into a two-day carnival where elite internationals, record numbers of local youths and athletes of all abilities shared the very same court.
Organised by Antica Community Development and Services Limited (ACDS), a registered charity, the inclusive celebration paired a community carnival with the finals of the inaugural ANTICA Singapore International Challenge 2026, a tournament sanctioned by Badminton Asia and the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
Breaking boundaries on and off the court
The headline moment saw Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs Mr Edwin Tong take to the court alongside Olympic gold medallist and four-time world champion Hendra Setiawan, Singapore Commonwealth Games mixed doubles gold medallist Terry Hee, and PT Djarum chief executive Victor Hartono.
More than 50 Singaporean players, the largest local contingent to date, took part, handing rising names such as Marcus Lau, Nge Joo Jie and Johann Prajogo valuable exposure against international opponents on home ground. In a powerful show of inclusion, 16 teams from Special Olympics Singapore and Team ABC (Autism Badminton Club) competed on the main stage alongside mainstream athletes.
A pathway for young talent
Running from 18 to 23 August at the WYSE Active Hall, the tournament doubled as a springboard for young athletes chasing the BWF World Tour, a route that past International Challenge winners have used on their way to world and Olympic titles. The event also debuted a cost-effective Instant Review System across two courts, cutting line-review infrastructure costs by up to 70 per cent compared with traditional Hawk-Eye setups.
“Through this event, we hope to demonstrate how sporting excellence can be celebrated alongside inclusion and community,” said Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman, President of ACDS. “By bringing international athletes, emerging youth players and persons of different abilities together, sport becomes a powerful platform for unity, aspiration and belonging.”
Inclusion without boundaries
The wider carnival was expected to draw around 5,000 visitors across the weekend, with rides, interactive games, food, live stage programming, busking and lion dance. Artists from MINDS co-created the visual identity for both the carnival and the tournament, giving artists with intellectual disabilities a professional platform on a large-scale public stage.
Held over the National Day season, OneSG61 with Antica offered a fresh model for community sport, one that sits comfortably alongside Singapore’s wider sporting calendar. More information is available at antica.sg.
