After only 5 years of playing badminton Mike Ra won OCAA gold in mixed doubles with Angeline Alvair and secured a second trip to the national championships

It’s hard to believe when you look at Mike Ra’s accomplishments, that he’s only been playing badminton for five years.

Ra won a gold medal in mixed doubles at the OCAA Championships on Saturday, Feb. 16 with his badminton partner Angeline Alviar.

They won 10-1 in the round robin and moved on to defeat both St. Lawrence and Centennial.

From there, the two will head off to Dalhousie University in Halifax for the National Championship in early March.

“I think it’s the same goal for everyone, trying to win a gold medal,” said Ra.

Ra has shown how fast one can develop skills when you love something.

Ra began playing badminton when a friend introduced him to their high school’s badminton club.

“I went there and started playing and it was really different,” said Ra. “It was a lot of dynamic movement, something you’re not expecting, and I just wanted to try out and it was pretty fun.”

Since then, Ra has not only kept on playing the sport, but has seriously upped his game.

“The first year I saw him play, I saw someone who was just an incredible athlete,” said Huskies badminton coach Will Schram who has known Ra for the three years that he’s been playing for GBC. “He just didn’t have a lot of control and wasn’t a very seasoned player.”

After his first year at the college, Ra spent some extra time in the summer playing outside of GBC. With that extra time, he came back the following year to win the bronze at nationals in the mixed doubles with his badminton partner Amy Ding.

For him though, playing the game is more than just about winning.

“When I play, I forget about everything and I just focus on badminton. I think that’s what I really like.”