Skip to main content

BADMINTON: Gold target still there

BA of Malaysia (BAM) secretary Ng Chin Chai has confirmed that the association's one gold target in the Olympics remains but has assured Lee Chong Wei that the pressure is not on him alone to work towards the objective in London.

.
Mixed pair Chan Peng Soon (left) and Goh Liu Ying have the potential to go for Olympic gold, according to BA of Malaysia secretary Ng Chin Chai.

Chin Chai said BAM's target was set two years ago and nothing has changed despite Chong Wei's ankle injury as he feels that men's doubles Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong or mixed pair Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying have what it takes to battle for gold in London.

The only player who could be out of her depth is women's singles Tee Jing Yi who is unlikely to get past the group stage. "The target is still one gold. BAM is not going to change that because it was set two years ago and every player, not Chong Wei alone, must try hard to achieve it. We can't put too much pressure on Chong Wei," said Chin Chai.

"Kien Keat-Boon Heong and Peng Soon-Liu Ying also have a chance. As for Chong Wei, we can prepare him but it will be entirely up to him on how well he can perform in London."

Chong Wei, who is happy with the rate of recovery over the last four weeks, said the injury is a blessing in disguise as his main rivals will be in the dark regarding his progress after missing several tournaments the last two months.

Chong Wei also lost his World No 1 ranking last week after holding it for three years and 11 months but the Malaysian said there is less pressure as he goes into the tournament ranked behind major rival Lin Dan of China.

"My rivals are unsure of my progress and keeping them guessing will only help my cause," said Chong Wei at Juara Stadium.

"Before the last Olympics, I beat Lin Dan in the Thomas Cup and everyone started seeing me as a gold medal prospect for the Beijing Olympics. Three months later, Lin Dan came back strongly to beat me in the final.

"With the injury, the pressure will not be on me. I am just focused on my progress and I am confident I will recover fully soon."

Chong Wei added: "There is not much difference between the world's top two so it has not affected my confidence (losing the No 1 ranking). The priority is the Olympics and not the ranking right now.
"Different players have different strengths so it is hard to compare players. Even if I don't win in London, I will continue playing until 2014 where I want to go for the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games gold and there is also next year's World Championships."

Lin Dan is set to retire after the London Olympics while Chong Wei's fortunes over the next two years will depend on how well he keeps himself in shape.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Malaysian junior athletes are just too ‘lembik’

Saya setuju. We are working on more coaches! “ @ManOlimpik : Malaysian junior athletes are just too ‘lembik’ http://t.co/7D7wmHWaNy ” — Khairy Jamaluddin (@Khairykj) June 10, 2014 The benchmark. Can our junior athletes train as hard as Malaysia's world No.1 badminton player, Lee Chong Wei? “IT IS okay lah. The training is not too bad lah. I will try lah … Wah, so hard lah today.” These are some of the common statements I hear from our juniors nowadays. It is not only in badminton. It is the easy-going, laid-back attitude and lack of competitiveness at grassroots level that we have problems producing quality players. I have travelled quite a bit. After ending my decade-long career with the national team, I went to play in the league in Europe. It’s different there. The European athletes know what they want. And they do it with real focus. Even the young ones possess admirable self-control and show a high level of commitment. During my time in the ...
12 comments
Read more

Organising Major Sports Events Can Inspire Sports Culture Among The People - Khairy

PUTRAJAYA, June 5 (Bernama) -- Organising major sports events can help inspire sports culture among the people and ensure a healthy lifestyle said Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin. Khairy said the Tour of Malaysia cycling race organised since 1963, for example, can encourage more people to take the sport in a more competitive way or just for recreation purposes. "A study carried out by a world renown medical journal, The Lancet, revealed that 61 percent of adults in Malaysia do not engage themselves in active sports. "A study by the Health Ministry revealed that only 25 percent of Malaysians exercise," he said in his speech when launching the 2013 Tour of Malaysia (Jelajah Malaysia) at the Youth and Sports Ministry, here, Wednesday. "Cycling, though not as popular here as in countries like Denmark, the activity is becoming popular among the people as can be seen through an increase in sale of bicycles for recreation," he sa...
Post a Comment
Read more

KBS realistik

TERUJA...Shabery (dua dari kanan) melancarkan Logo Tahun Industri Sukan 2011-2012 di Casa 1, MSN, semalam.    KETIKA beberapa sukan utama diletakkan sasaran meraih pingat khususnya emas di Sukan Olimpik 2012 London, penyertaan bola sepak dan hoki sebagai keluarga baru program Road To London pula dilihat sekadar membantu mereka melepasi kelayakan. Mungkin bersikap lebih realistik dengan keupayaan kedua-dua sukan itu di pentas lebih tinggi, Menteri Belia dan Sukan, Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek mahu segala bantuan diberikan kepada sejumlah 50 pemain bola sepak dan hoki kebangsaan bagi membolehkan mereka tersenarai sebagai kontinjen ke London. “Bagi acara hoki dan bola sepak, kita tidak boleh melihat bantuan perlu diberi selepas mereka layak tetapi kita akan cuba bantu mereka supaya mereka layak. “Tiada kompromi terhadap misi mendapatkan emas pertama tetapi sasaran kita tahun ini ialah mendapatkan seberapa ramai atlet ke Sukan Olimpik,” katanya selepas mempen...
Post a Comment
Read more