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USA Badminton (USAB) is guided by a volunteer Board of Directors. The directors are elected/selected in accordance with Section 7.6 of the USAB bylaws.

As detailed in the bylaws, independent directors on the USAB board volunteer for rolling four-year terms starting January 1 of each calendar year. Please consider volunteering for a board position at any time by submitting your resume/bio to the chair of the nominating and governance committee at ngchair@usabadminton.org. More details about board director roles and terms, including for independent directors, may be found in Section 7.6 of the USAB bylaws.

The Board of Directors represents the interests of USAB’s memberships, the United States Badminton community and Badminton athletes by providing USAB with policy, guidance and strategic direction.

Please reach out to any of our Board Directors at ContactUs@usabadminton.org.

Board meeting minutes can be found here.

Individuals comprising the current Board of Directors are as follows. Click on their image to learn more about them.

Ken Wong

Chair
Financial Audit Committee
Independent Director

Pavan Vedere

At-Large Director, Secretary

Nibu Paul

Coaching Director

Audit

Beiwen Zhang

Athlete Director

Eva Lee

Athlete Director,

USOPC Team USA AC Representative

Paula Lynn O. Cao Hok OLY

Athlete Director

USOPC Team USA AC Alternate Representative

Audit

Iris Wang, OLY

Athlete Director

Patty Pflaging

Independent Director

Philip Varghese

Independent Director

Audit

Ben Apple

Independent Director

Sudhir Kondisetty

Independent Director

BOARD MEMBERS POSITION TERM(S) SERVED TENURE
OFFICERS
Ken Wong Chair As Chair: [2019-2020] [2021-2022] [Q4 2024-present] See Board Director tenure below
Pavan Vedere Secretary As Secretary: [2023-2024] See Board Director tenure below
BOARD DIRECTORS
Philip Varghese Independent Director (with term 2022-2025) [2022-present] Philip joined the board in 2021, in a new independent director seat that was added to the board as part of a 2020 settlement agreement with the USOPC. He is currently in a first term as a board director.
Patty Pflaging Independent Director (with term 2023-2026) [2019-2022] [2023-present] Patty joined the board in November 2018, filling a vacancy with term 2015-2018. (She started in the last year of the four-year term. Less than half of a term does not count as a full term.) She is currently serving a second term as a board director.
Ken Wong Independent Director (with term 2024-2027) [2020-2023] [2024-present] Ken joined the board in June 2019, filling a vacancy (started mid-term and served less than half of that term.). He is currently serving a second term as a board director.
Pavan Vedere At-Large Director (with term 2023-2026) [2023-present] Pavan joined the board in May 2021, filling a vacancy with term 2019-2022 (started mid-term and served less than half of that term.)
Sudhir Kondisetty Independent Director (with term 2025-2028) [2025-present] Sudhir joined the board in March 2025
Ben Apple Independent Director (with term 2025-2028) [2025-present] Ben joined the board in March 2025.
Nibu Paul 2021-present [Successor TBD – Coach Volunteer Needed for 2025-2028 term] Coaching Director (with previous term 2021-2024, current term 2025-2028) [2021-2024] (election for successor to be held for 2025-2028 term) Nibu joined the board in March 2019, filling a vacancy (started mid-term, less than half of a term. Nibu’s term expired December 31, 2024, however per the USAB bylaws, a board director can remain seated until their successor joins the board.
Eva Lee, OLY Athlete Director (with term 2025-2028) who is USAB’s representative to the Team USA Athletes’ Commission (“Team USA AC”) [2025-2028] Eva joined the board in 2024 (started mid-term, less than half of a term) and was elected to the USOPC Team USA AC position for 2025-2028. Eva completed in the 2017 World Championships and is an Olympian and Elite 10 Year Athlete.
Paula Lynn (Obanana) Cao Hok, OLY Athlete Director (with term 2025-2028) who is USAB’s alternate representative to the Team USA AC [2025-2028] Paula joined the board in 2024 (started in the Athlete Director [2024-2027] seat), and was elected to the USOPC Team USA AC alternate position for 2025-2028. Paula competed in the 2019 Pan American Games and is an Olympian and Elite 10 Year Athlete.
Iris Wang, OLY Athlete Director (with term 2022-2025) [2022-2025] Iris joined the board in 2022. Iris competed in the 2023 World Championships and is an Olympian and Elite 10 Year Athlete.
Beiwen Zhang Athlete Director (with term 2024-2027) [2024-2027] Beiwen Zhang was elected (by Elite 10 Year Athletes) to the board in April 2025.

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Pavan Vedere
Independent Director

Pavan Vedere is a Software Director from the San Francisco Bay Area. He has two-plus decades of sports administration experience. Vedere is the President of Indus Cricket Club, which he helped transform from a recreational club to a sought-after club for aspiring junior cricketers, many of whom have made it to the regional and USA National U19 teams. He has decades of experience working with local cities and school districts to develop sports infrastructure. As the City of Fremont Recreation Commission chair, Vedere was instrumental in developing multiple sports facilities and parks, including a skate park, water park, batting cages, and the country’s first lighted Astroturf cricket field. Vedere has been volunteering for USAB for many years in various roles: Umpire, club parent representative, Junior Advisory Group representative, Junior Review Panel member, Regional Director and was the recipient of USAB’s Debbie Brown volunteer award. Vedere enjoys playing badminton in local clubs, and his two children play in USAB junior tournaments.

Nibu Paul

Coaching Director, Audit Chair

Nibu Paul is a certified HP-1 coach who has served as a coach for more than 15 years, serving multiple badminton gyms in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. Currently, Paul is a Technology Manager at a large financial institution in Plano, Texas, where he oversees more than 15 developers on multiple technology platforms.

Patty Pflaging

Independent Director

Patty Pflaging is a technology marketing and business development executive from the San Francisco Bay Area. A native of Texas, Patty holds degrees in computer science and managerial studies from Rice University. She and her husband have three children, one of whom previously played competitive badminton.

Philip Varghese

Independent Director

After 35+ years in local government (cities and counties) in the USA and public accounting overseas, Philip Varghese retired in May 2022 from full-time work in auditing, accounting, and finance, even though he maintains his Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license and credentials as a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and Certified Government Finance Officer (CGFO). Philip holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Mumbai and was licensed as a Chartered Accountant (CA) by the Institute of CA of India (ICAI). He is a member of the AICPA, its Not-for-profit section, the Government Finance Officers Association of Texas (GFOAT), the ACFE, the Dallas Chapter of the ICAI, and other clubs and organizations. He is volunteering as a Board and Audit Committee member of USA Badminton, Precinct Chair of his political party, Election Judge (Dallas County Elections), local community affairs, etc. Philip was a recreational badminton player until injuries a few years ago sidelined him. He is married to his physician wife of 35 years. They have two sons, the older in radiology residency training and the younger in graduate school in healthcare.