APRIL 5, 1996
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

1996 YONEX U.S. JUNIOR NATIONALS KICK OFF IN ATLANTA

(ATLANTA, Ga.) -- Shuttles were a flyin' at Georgia State
University yesterday, as more than 145 of the nation's brightest
young badminton players kicked off the preliminary rounds of the
1996 Yonex U.S. Junior National Championships.

Top seeds won as expected, including last year's Under-21
champion Mark Manha (Miller Place, N.Y.), who defeated Jason Lee
(Eugene, Ore.) in a surprisingly tough match 17-15, 15-2.  Other
top seeded winners today included Lily Chen (Stanford. Calif.),
Howard Bach (San Francisco, Calif.)/Stanley Wo (Daly City,
Calif.), Katie Maloney (Miller Place, N.Y.), Bob Malaythong
(Rockville, Md.), Peter Collins (Tacoma, Wash.), and Janae
Mertens (Manhattan Beach, Calif.).

Today's key matches include the Under-21 men's doubles semifinal,
as 1995 champions Howard Bach and Stanley Wo take on Jason Lee
and Yee Siang Ong (Albany, Calif.) at 11:00 am.  In the other
semifinal, Chris Hales (Wooster, Ohio) and Raj Patel (Miami,
Fla.) will take on Jon Frisch (Miller Place, N.Y.) and Mark Manha
at 11:00 am.

The 1996 Yonex U.S. Junior National Badminton Championships
consists of five events (boy's singles, girl's singles, boy's
doubles, girl's doubles, mixed doubles), spread over five age
categories (Under-21, Under-19, Under-16, Under-14, and Under-
12).  The event will be the basis of determining the 1996 Junior
National Badminton Team.

The following is the upcoming schedule of events for the 1996
Yonex U.S. National Badminton Championships (April 4-7, Georgia
State University, Atlanta, Ga.).

Friday, April 5 - Play continues, 9:00 am - 9:00 pm

Saturday, April 6 - Quarter/Semifinals, 9:00 am - 9:00 pm

Sunday, April 7 - Finals, 11:00 am - 3:00 pm

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(FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT PAUL PAWLACZYK, USBA
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR AT 719-578-4808)