347 players set to compete in Maldives Junior Open with Special Olympics category

The Dhiraagu Maldives Junior Open 2025 badminton tournament begins tomorrow featuring 347 players across 30 events, including a Special Olympics category.

Organised by The Badminton Club and the Badminton Association of Maldives (BAM), the competition will see 735 matches played over four days at the Ekuveni indoor courts in Malé.

Thirty international players from India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, the Philippines and China are expected to compete alongside Maldivian athletes.

The Special Olympics Committee of Maldives has entered 15 athletes in the para and Special Olympics category, which will take place on the opening two days before the open and age-group matches begin. Age-group competitions will be contested in the under-9, 11, 13, 15, 17 and 19 categories.

The tournament has drawn strong participation from local academies, including 30 players from Ajfan International Academy, 15 from Afnan Rasheed Badminton Academy, and athletes from M Sports Academy, the Badminton Academy and Lolo Sports Academy.

Players from atoll-based academies are also competing, with 59 entrants from Revival Eydhafushi Academy and more than 25 from Naifaru’s Badminton Academy among those taking part. Senior Maldivian national team players based in Male' are also expected to feature.