For immediate release

KPU Eagles win national bronze

Metro Vancouver – (March 6, 2012) – Two athletes from KPU’s varsity badminton team returned from the 2012 Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) National Championships with the University's third medal in three consecutive championships. Willis Kwee (Richmond, BC) and Andy Wong (Vancouver, BC) won a bronze medal in men’s doubles.

Kwee and Wong began the tournament in impressive form on day one of the championships, defeating the eventual gold medallists in three sets [15-21, 21-16, 22-20]. Unfortunately the round-robin play wasn’t indicative of the end result where the Eagles lost in straight sets [12-21, 15-21] to the duo representing Douglas College.

In the playoff for bronze, the Eagles regained their composure and handily defeated the ACAC pair of Jonathan Chang and Jason Chou in two sets [21-15, 21-10] to take home the bronze in men’s doubles.

Reflecting upon their result, fourth year student-athlete Wills Kwee commented: "Even though we're disappointed with our results, we're glad to have a spot on the podium. We will continue to train hard to bring the championship banner back to KPU next year."

Third year student-athlete Michelle Simard (Surrey, BC), who is no stranger to CCAA National Competition, having competed at the last three CCAA National Championships with three different partners, teamed up with first year student-athlete Bradley Low (Vancouver, BC) and fought through to the bronze medal playoff in mixed doubles. They were defeated in straight sets by the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) [21-15, 21-10].

To view the final championship results, visit http://www.ccaabadminton2012.ca/

The Eagles completed a successful 2011-2012 campaign, finishing in 4th place in the team competition in the Pacific Western Athletic Association (PACWEST), with two silver medals; one in men’s doubles and mixed doubles, and advancing four athletes to the CCAA Badminton National Championships to represent the PACWEST host team.

KPU has been serving the Metro Vancouver region for more than 30 years, and has opened doors to success for more than 250,000 people. Four campuses—Richmond, Surrey, Cloverdale and Langley—offer a comprehensive range of sought-after programs, including business, liberal arts and science, design, health, trades and technology, apprenticeships, horticulture, and academic and career advancement. Over 17,500 students annually have a choice from over 200 programs, including bachelor’s degrees, associate degrees, diplomas, certificates and citations.

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For more information about the KPU Eagles, contact:
Elise Le Brun
Director, Athletics & Recreation
604.599.2005
elise.lebrun@kpu.ca

For more information about KPU, contact:
Joanne Saunders
Director, Marketing and Communications
604.599.2243
joanne.saunders@kpu.ca