Skip to main content

Good times set to roll on

KUALA LUMPUR: Glory days beckon for Malaysian badminton again.
Lee Chong Wei was given the green light to play competitively again after a seven-month absence due to a doping violation.

Chong Weiā€™s non-appearance proved to be a bane with Malaysia groping in the dark searching for a winner.

Four legs of this seasonā€™s prestigious Superseries circuit have been contested to date with the Malaysians all knocked out in the early rounds.

Chong Wei was a winner of six menā€™s singles titles in 2013 and four in 2014, making him the most successful sportsman in the country.

National coach Hendrawan believes the 32-year-old Chong Wei has the character to reach the top again.

ā€œChong Wei will catch up soon although his rivals are one step ahead of him now. He will bounce back and bring cheers to the country again,ā€ said Hendrawan.

The former Indonesian world champion was recently appointed by Badminton Association of Malaysia technical director Morten Frost to coach Chong Wei. The others under Hendrawanā€™s guidance are Liew Daren, Chean June Wei and Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin. Chong Wei was previously under Tey Seu Bock.

ā€œIndonesian doubles shuttler Sigit Budiarto was banned for two years after he tested positive for a banned substance at the 1998 Singapore Open. He came back strongly and was in the same team with me that won the 2002 Thomas Cup title. I expect Chong Wei to return strongly, too,ā€ said Hendrawan.

He added that he would sit down with Chong Wei to plan his itinerary for the season.
ā€œChong Wei is not getting any younger. He has been out of tournaments for seven months now. Itā€™s important for us to plan carefully. Weā€™ve to be selective of the tournaments.
ā€œWhen Morten assigned me to coach Chong Wei, he set two goals for me ā€“ to help him win a world title and become an Olympic champion.

ā€œRight now, we need to review his training programme. We will choose some of the Superseries tournaments to compete in with the focus on major championships. It is my job to help him realise the dream of becoming a world and Olympic champion.ā€

Chong Weiā€™s first assignment is the Sudirman Cup mixed team championships in Dongguan, China, from May 10-17. It will be followed by the Singapore SEA Games in June. The biggest challenge for Chong Wei is the World Championships in Jakarta from Aug 10-16.



 by Rajes Paul - The Star

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ex-coach's jail sentence cut to a year

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal yesterday sentenced former athletics coach C. Ramanathan to 12 months' jail for molesting two junior athletes 19 years ago. A three-man bench led by Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus unanimously dismissed Ramanathan's appeal against conviction, but varied the jail sentence of four years to a year, which was to run concurrently. Following yesterday's ruling, Ramanathan, 75, a former teacher, walked out a free man as he had served 10 months in Kajang Prison. Convicts get one-third remission for good behaviour while in prison. However, he will lose his pension. Hishamudin, who sat with Datuk Abdul Wahab Patail and Datuk Linton Albert, said the court found no merit to overturn the conviction. "However, in reducing the sentence, we considered Ramanathan's age and the long years the appeal has taken." Deputy public prosecutor Awang Armadajaya Awang Mahmud submitted that then High Court judge Tan Sri Abdull Hamid E...
2 comments
Read more

Govt Always Gives Emphasis To Sporting Culture, Says PM

KUALA TERENGGANU, May 29 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badaw i said the government always gives emphasis on cultivating a strong sporting culture in achieving excellence at the international level. As such, the Prime Minister said, it was important to scout for young talents in sports. "I observe that the Malaysia Games (Sukma) has become one of the important platforms to do so. "In this arena, the potentials and skills of the youngsters can be identified for development so that they can achieve greater success in sports," he said in his message in the souvenir book of the 12th Sukma from May 31 until June 9. Abdullah said he was aware that competition in sports was very keen and challenging but this did not mean that Malaysian athletes were incapable of competing at the international level. "The fact is that we have all the characteristics required to be excellent. We must inculcate a strong fighting spirit so that we don't easily surrender,...
1 comment
Read more

Chance to catch Messi and company

  FAM deputy president Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah and vice president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin with FC Barcelona chief executive officer Antoni Rossich yesterday. Pic by Osman Adnan LIONEL Messi's presence alone could sell half the tickets despite reigning world club champions FC Barcelona's date with a Malaysian XI at the National Stadium on Aug 10 falling on the third day of Hari Raya. The much anticipated visit of the four-time European champions comes with expectations from fans who want a full star-studded line-up. "The summer will be a busy period with a lot of uncertainty with players moving away and coming in. "But yes, our plans are to bring our full team here," said FC Barcelona chief executive officer Antoni Rossich yesterday. Rossich was speaking at the announcement of the friendly match, which is part of the three-match FC Barcelona Asia Tour 2013, which sees the giants also visiting China and Thailand. Also pre...
2 comments
Read more