The Vanuatu team photo is Rodney Talo (left), Jacklynda Molidu (middle), Lyn Kuai (right). Photo: Supplied
Vanuatu will be the first Pacific nation to compete at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Para Badminton World Championship.
Jacklynda Molidu will be the only Pacific athlete to compete in the championships in Bahrain.
The 29-year-old picked up a badminton racket less than a year ago when Badminton Oceania officials visited Vanuatu promoting the sport.
Molidu, who is short stature, said badminton is easier on her body compared to lawn tennis which she used to play.
She said the racket is lighter to hold, and the shuttlecock easier to handle.
Photo: Supplied
"Just to train, I need to move my body around, to hold the racket and to get used to that," Molidu said
The para-athlete remembers her first competition, admitting that she did not know the rules of indoor badminton, having only played on a makeshift court out in the open.
"So, I [was] just sitting down and asked the coach for Oceania badminton... could you please come and explain the rules, the rules for badminton in the court.
"And after that the game, I was sitting down and watching how others are playing."
After losing two games and watching other matches, Molidu went back to her accommodation and studied a YouTube clip on how to play.
"But I just watched them, how the movement goes like that," she said.
"I saw New Zealand played against Australia, and I saw the movement [of the] New Zealand [player] that tomorrow I'm gonna face that."
Teaching herself the techniques from YouTube, Molidu won her last two games in the competition.
Molidu said that she will be receiving professional coaching for a week in New Zealand ahead of the world championships.
Molidu said that it is hard work and rewarding, and she wants to encourage people to play sport regardless of any disability.
"Never look down on their disability... they have to look on their ability, that they can do something."
The para world championships was founded by the BWF in 1998. Bahrain will host the event from 8-14 February in the capital city of Manama, becoming the first country in the Middle East to hold the championship.
