Badminton Europe Confederation recently held their Annual Congress over the weekend of 28/30th March 2025 in Belgrade, Serbia and as part of the Congress, awards are given out in various categories, such as Player of the Year; Shot of the Year; amongst others, including Technical Officials Award. This year we are proud to report that this award was presented to none other than our Chairman - Malcolm Banham ! This award is hugely deserved by Malcolm as can be seen in the citation below which was submitted to Badminton Europe.

Congratulations Malcolm !

"As you will be aware Malcolm has been an active umpire for England, Europe and BWF for many years. He joined the BUAofE in 1989. He quickly rose through the grades, achieving the highest grade in England in 1996. Since 1996 (when our database records start), he has officiated 3656 matches . Of these duties, 282 were finals, including World Championships, Olympic Games, Thomas Cup, Uber Cup and Sudirman Cup. 

He has also of course officiated at numerous All England Championships, and this year completed his 32nd event, the last few of which have been solely as Manager of Umpires. On  top of these roles, Malcolm has also been keen to pass on his knowledge and experience to other umpires, and has taken on assessment roles within the BUAofE, BEC and BWF. This year he has stepped down as Chair of the BWF Umpire Assessment Panel. 

The BUAofE feels that Malcolm's contribution to badminton officiating  is deserving of this award and the recognition it gives him."