Dear Friends of Badminton,

I would like to extend my warmest thanks to everyone who has worked over the past year for the success of the Arctic Open badminton tournament. Since our organizing committee consists of only two full-time employees, it’s clear that without the contribution of our volunteers — before, during, and after the event — none of this would be possible. Arctic Open has been a tremendous effort, showing just how many people in our sport are willing to devote their time, skills, and connections for the greater good. Once again this year, we had volunteers who took nearly two weeks off from their regular jobs to help make this event happen.

The 2025 event was the third, and also the second-to-last, in this hosting cycle. Last year we doubled our spectator numbers compared to the first tournament, and this third year we increased the number of scanned (i.e. actually present) spectators by 20% compared to last year. Fantastic! If we can achieve similar growth next year, I would consider our first hosting cycle a great success.

I met many badminton enthusiasts last week at Vantaa Energia Arena, and I want to personally thank everyone for the words of encouragement and appreciation that Pekka and I received throughout the week in abundance.

I strongly believe that as it continues to develop, Arctic Open will become badminton’s key to attracting private funding into the sport. Badminton Finland is a non-profit organization, meaning that all revenue is directed toward the development of badminton in Finland. I was deeply moved by the enthusiasm our audience showed this year when Finnish players faced international top names on home soil. The atmosphere in the hall was electric on multiple occasions.

It’s also wonderful to see how the audience has embraced players they’ve now seen live several times. A good example is men’s singles winner Chou Tien Chen, who already has a large fan base at our events — and we’ve even heard talk of founding an official Fan Club for his coach, Victoria Kao, here in Finland! :)

One thing we aim to improve in the future is to present these world-class players and their stories more widely in Finland — both to the public and to the media.
Did you know, for example, that Chou was diagnosed with cancer in 2023 while preparing for the 2024 Olympic Games? After surgery, he made a full return and has since won, among other titles, the Arctic Open twice in a row.
Or that our women’s singles champion and world No. 1, Akane Yamaguchi, is only 156 cm tall, earning her the nickname “The Tiny Giant”? She is the first Japanese player ever to reach the world No. 1 ranking, and she has already won three world championship titles.

As I write this, we still don’t know whether the Arctic Open will continue in Finland after 2026. We have applied for the next hosting cycle, and the BWF has promised to make its decisions before the end of the year. If Finland is offered the event again, we will have much to consider before accepting it — prize money and production costs keep rising, and key partners must be firmly on board before any decision to host can be made.

My heartfelt thanks to all our partners, sponsors, and to the badminton capital of Finland Vantaa for your support of the 2025 event.

Behind every successful tournament director there are at least two men.
So my warm thanks go to my partner in crime Pekka Säilä and to Peter Bruun, Chairman of the Board of Badminton Management Oy. Your contributions to this tournament have been nothing short of extraordinary.

CLASH OF CLANS Arctic Open 2025 powered by YONEX – over and out!

Hiittinen, 14 October 2025

Annika Paananen

P.S. I booked the hotel room quotas for next year’s tournament on Monday, 13 October 2025, at 2:20 p.m. — so the preparations for the next Arctic Open are now officially underway!