LOWER NUMBERS, FALLING STANDARDS
Last week’s National Championships a reflection of sad state of the sport, say former shuttlers
THERE wasn't much excitement at last week’s National Championships in Ipoh, and this has led to several former shuttlers questioning the state of Malaysian badminton.
Is the sport, which led to Malaysia winning three Olympic silver medals in 2016, heading in the right direction?
Not only was the response at the national championships poor, but there was a glaring lack of quality in comparison to previous years.
It begs the question of whether enough development work is done at the grassroots.
A look at the entries in the past two editions of the national championships shows a sharp drop in the number of participants.
In 2017, the total number of entries was 242 while for last year, it was 260.
But it gets worse, as this year’s national championships attracted only 209 entries.
A former international, who did not wish to be named, believes more efforts should be put in by the state badminton associations.
“From an ex-player's point of view, we usually see more state coaches at the National Championships but that wasn’t the case this year.
“Most of the coaches were from private clubs.
“Another thing I noticed is that most of the non-BAM (BA of Malaysia) players were from these clubs as they did not wear their state jerseys.
“Of course it is good to have the participation of private clubs but what about the states?
“Shouldn’t there be more entries if there were more players from the states as well? Not everyone can afford to be part of a private club.
“I believe it’s necessary to ask this because the office bearers from the state BAs are also BAM council members.
“Are they doing what is needed or are they onboard solely to enjoy the benefits?
“I just think more should be done by the states at the grassroots,” said the former shuttler.
It is learnt that BAM's total expenditure (coaching and training programmes, staff remuneration, players’ allowances and incentives, local and overseas competition) for a year is between RM28 and RM30 million.
And from the above figure, about RM5 million a year is allocated for state development programmes and secrataries’ remuneration.
“I just feel that the states should do more than depend on BAM to fund their programmes and provide shuttlecocks.
“Based on the number of entries this year, perhaps BAM should start assisting the private clubs, only then it’s fair.
“The National Championships have lost their sparkle and it's sad to see that. Let’s not even talk about the quality.”
The National Championships, which have been held annually for over two decades, have produced many top class shuttlers including the current BAM coaching director, Wong Choong Hann, who was crowned champion in 1998 and 1999.
Former World No 1 Lee Chong Wei is the most successful player in the national championships, having won the men’s singles title 10 times consecutively since 2002.
The National Championships have lost their sparkle and it’s sad to see that. Let’s not even talk about the quality.”