ACAC Men's Badminton Championship Preview Feature on Broncos Troy Morgan

It's 2:00 p.m., and Troy Morgan has just finished a day of classes for his Bachelor of Applied Science Horticulture program at Olds College in Olds, Alberta.

He dresses up for the Alberta cold, preparing to go for what could be a "Recovery run of 8 kilometres or an up-tempo run of 10-14 kilometres."

A few hours later, he will head back to the gymnasium to badminton practise where he is a member of the Olds College Broncos' badminton team competing in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference.

"I'm used to a very active lifestyle. It's just part of who I am."

Growing up in Hythe, Alberta, he played all of the sports. They rattle off his tongue: "hockey my whole life., baseball, volleyball, badminton, basketball and running."

In high school, he finished 8th in the 1,500-metre event at the Alberta Schools Athletic Association outdoor track and field championships with a clocking of 4:30.47.

Running would take him places, in this case, Thompson River University in Kamloops, British Columbia.

It was in Kamloops the last two years that the 5-foot-9 Morgan competed in U Sports cross country and track and field.

He had some impressive times according to a track & field results page: 600 metre indoor, 1:30.07; 800 meter indoor 2:06.80, outdoor, 2:30.16; 1,500 metre indoor 4:14.44, outdoor, 4:09.24 and 3,000 metre indoor 9:31.73 and outdoor 9:28.20. He has lowered those times for some personal bests since.

At the 2019 U Sports Cross Country Championships hosted by Queen's University, he would finish 130th overall in the 10 k run with a clocking of 35 21.8.

With a twin sister named Sydney, who plays hockey and badminton, Morgan, who carries over a nickname "Bug" given to him by his mother at a young age, headed back west to continue his education.

Olds College was the place to be.

"It had the horticultural program that I needed to transfer to, and it had badminton. So it was a good fit for me. I always wanted to play college badminton."

How do the sports relate?

"I have always excelled and found the most success in running but found that I enjoyed playing badminton the most.

"Running is very harsh, and you have to stay mentally strong and push through. Badminton, you have to think more strategically and pick your shots and find the weakness of your opponent."

Another difference is in the footwear required for the two sports and the amount paid for such.

"In badminton, the shoes are around $149, and I only have about two pairs for the season. In running, with all of the kilometres you would go through, probably five different shoes. Spikes are $180 and good trainers $250."

Olds College will join the Concordia University of Edmonton Thunder, The Kings University Eagles and NAIT Ooks February 22-23, 2020, at Edmonton's NAIT Gym for the 2019-2020 Badminton Championships.

Returning ACAC Gold medal winners include men's singles, Narayan Ramdhani (TKU) women's singles, Eyota Kwan (NAIT) along with women's singles champion from 2016-2017 and 2017-2018, Takeisha Wang (CUE).

Brother and sister, the Wangs were CCAA Badminton Male & Female Players of the Year last year.