Lee Yang and Wang Chi-Lin were fined a sum of $250 by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) for wearing shirts of different designs, Sina Sports reported.
At this year’s Barcelona Spain Masters, the world number 7 men’s doubles pair wore shirts of the same colour (black), but the design/print on the shirts were different.
Lee’s clothing and equipment are sponsored by VICTOR, while Wang is sponsored by YONEX.
Procuring shirts and shorts with the same design/print in their cases would be rather difficult, if not impossible.
This is not the first incident where Lee and Wang were fined for wearing differently designed shirts, even though the colour was the same. After last year’s Chinese Taipei Open, BWF had fined them for the same reason.
The duo is confused with BWF’s rule and reportedly very dissatisfied with the lack of standards.
BWF’s General Competition Regulations state that the two players of a doubles pair must wear shirts and shorts of “same colour and similar design.”
But the Summary of GCR Clothing Regulations makes no mention of clothing design for doubles partners in BWF World Tour tournaments.
This can come up as contradictory and confusing to many.
This particular rule about clothing design may come across as rather strict considering that BWF, in February 2020, allowed opponents in a match to wear same-coloured shirts provided their shorts/skirts are of different colours.
Troubles with BWF for clothing violation is quite a common occurrence. Viktor Axelsen also made headlines in March not just for winning the All England, but for receiving a $250 fine as well. Then, Axelsen wore same-coloured shirt (white) as his opponent Chou Tien Chen in the final.