SHUTTLECOCK DIPLOMACY

Tony Gunawan and Howard Bach stepped onto the court late Saturday night at the Arrowhead Pond, wholeheartedly aware of the moment. In the first International Badminton Federation World Championships played in the United States, the pair spent much of the week contributing to U.S. sports history.

On Thursday night, Gunawan and Bach, seeded 13th, became the first American men’s doubles team to advance to the quarterfinals of the IBF world championships.

They added to their legacy Friday, defeating top-seeded Jens Eriksen and Martin Lundgaard Hansen of Denmark, the three-time defending European champions, earning a berth in the semifinals. The victory also guaranteed the Orange County residents a medal, something no other American badminton player has accomplished in the Olympics or world championships.

On Saturday, with United States Olympic Committee Chairman Peter Ueberroth in attendance, Gunawan and Bach continued their run, defeating fourth-seeded Luluk Hadiyanto and Yulianto Alven of Indonesia, 15-9, 15-13, to advance to tonight’s final.

Before an overwhelmingly pro-U.S. crowd, Gunawan and Bach scored the first three points of the first game and the last five. In the second game, Bach served consecutive aces, highlighting a five-point run that gave the Americans a 14-8 advantage.

“I could only dream of what has happened this week,” Bach said Saturday afternoon, as he rested for the semifinal match.

Bach, who was born in Vietnam and moved to Orange from San Francisco five years ago, said he hoped his team’s success would generate more domestic attention for badminton, a popular sport in other parts of the world but considered little more than a picnic activity for most Americans.

“In order for the sport to be promoted correctly, we need medals,” said Bach, who works part time at a Home Depot in Orange. “The American mentality is they want winners. Second place is just the first loser.”

Ueberroth was impressed with the performance of the American team.

“To medal for the first time is really remarkable,” he said.

Gunawan, a Fullerton resident, is no stranger to international hardware. He won a gold medal for Indonesia in men’s doubles at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, teaming with Candra Wijaya, who advanced to today’s final with partner Sigit Budiarto.

Still, Gunawan never expected to be standing on the podium this week, listening to the American national anthem as a medal dangled from his neck.

“Our goal was just to get to the quarterfinals,” he said.

Gunawan, a celebrity in his native country because of his badminton accomplishments, immigrated to the United States in early 2002 in hopes of developing a career outside the sport. Later that year he married longtime Indonesian national teammate Eti Tantra in Las Vegas, and they moved into a one-bedroom apartment in Fullerton and joined the Orange County Badminton Club in Orange, one of the premier training sites in the world.

Tony trained and both coached while mining for other opportunities. Tony took English classes at Santa Ana College and then computer engineering courses at DeVry University and Westwood College. Eti began working at an insurance company in Brea.

Gunawan and Bach began training together at OCBC about three years ago. Because Gunawan is not a U.S. citizen, he was ineligible to compete for the U.S. in the 2004 Olympics. Bach, 26, paired with three-time Olympian Kevin Han in Athens. They lost in the second round, Han then retired and Bach teamed with Gunawan last September.

“He’s always there to back me up when I need him,” Bach said. “We have good chemistry and a lot of trust.”

Even though he is not a U.S. citizen, Gunawan was allowed to compete this week after USA Badminton was granted a waiver by the IBF.

Gunawan, 30, said he only recently passed the interview required to a receive a green card, the identification document provided to permanent resident aliens in the U.S. Gunawan said once he receives the green card, he’ll have to wait another five years before naturalization.

The long process is the main reason Gunawan has quietly announced the world championships would serve as his last major event. He plans to devote much of his court time to developing Bach and other young Americans. However, he won’t completely close the door on his competitive career.

“Citizenship would change my mind,” he said.

In the women’s doubles final, Yang Wei and Zhang Jiewen of China defeated countrymen Gao Ling and Huang Sui, 17-16, 15-7. It was a rematch of the 2004 Olympic final, also won by Yang and Zhang.

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The facts

* What: Finals of the International Badminton Federation World Championships.

* Where: Arrowhead Pond

* Schedule: Mixed doubles final, 5 p.m.; women’s singles final, 6 p.m.; men’s singles final, 7 p.m.; men’s doubles final, 8:15 p.m.

* Tickets: Individual tickets start at $8 and are available at Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com and the Arrowhead Pond box office, or by phoning (714) 740-2000.