STAY FIT: Where you can be Olympian

BY JOHN HANC | Special to Newsday

August 5, 2008

First of two parts on Olympic sports on Long Island.

One is a sport of blinding speed, a relative newcomer to the Olympic program. The other, one of strength and skill, a competition as old as the games themselves.

What badminton and weight lifting have in common is this: While they are hugely popular in other parts of the world, they are obscure here. Yet, these two very different sports not only get their own Olympic spotlights next week, they also have their local venues and adherents.

BADMINTON

Forget the leisurely backyard version. Real badminton, played as a singles or doubles game on an indoor court and with a feathered (not plastic) shuttlecock, is a combination of tennis, volleyball and squash. Here are some places to try it yourself:

Miller Place Adult

Badminton Club

North Country Road Junior High School, 191 North Country Rd.,

Miller Place; Monday-Wednesday, 7-8:30 p.m. $5. Call 631-474-2710.

Berner Middle School

50 Carman Mill Rd., Massapequa. Eight-week class offered this fall, Wednesdays, 7:30-9:30 p.m. $40. Call Massapequa Continuing Education, 516-797-6173.

Garden City High School

170 Rockaway Ave., Garden City; three courts available for badminton, Fridays, 6-10 p.m. Call 516-294-3030.

[CORRECTION: Badminton can be played at Garden City Stratford School, 97 Stratford Ave., Garden City, on Fridays, 6-10 p.m. An incorrect school was listed in Tuesday's Explore LI. (A17 ALL 08/07/08)]

WEIGHT LIFTING

It's not bodybuilding. It's not powerlifting. It's Olympic weight lifting, which involves two explosive movements - the clean and jerk and the snatch.

While weight lifters are strong, they're not necessarily big. Ironically, while many Americans today do some form of weight lifting for fitness, they know little about weight lifting for competition.

You won't find it, however, in most gyms. Here are places where the real weight lifters train:

Totally Fit

345 Broadway, Bethpage, 516-935-5960

A number of Olympic lifters work out here, under coach Chris Smith. Day rate is $15.

Professional Athletic Performance Center

645 Stewart Ave., Garden City, 516-794-3278

Co-owner Tim Stump is a former Empire State medalist. Call for rates. (No day rate, but will give free "performance evaluation.")

Lost Battalion Hall Olympic Weightlifting

93-29 Queens Blvd., Rego Park, 646-645-1219

Just two blocks from the LIE, this is the center for Olympic weight lifting in the New York area. Instruction for beginners is offered Monday and Wednesday evenings 5:30-9:45 p.m. Visit lostbattalionhallweightlifting.org.