More than 300 attend Astro badminton camp
Head Coach Chan Chong Ming was impressed with big turnout of participants aged between 10 and 12
KUCHING: The response to Astro Kem Badminton (AKB) Kuching Selection Camp at Arena Sukan, Jalan Simpang Tiga yesterday was overwhelming with 360 hopefuls aged between 10 and 12 turning up for the selection and 84 for the coaching clinic.
Astro Kem Badminton head coach Chan Chong Ming was impressed with the big turnout and said the selection camp was a very good platform to unearth new talents.
“I can see that the participants for this camp has been increasing every year and they gain a lot of benefits by attending the camp.
“We are evaluating the participants based on their basic skills on the court and their general attitude.
“Those who pass Step 1 today will advance to Step 2 tomorrow where they will be tested more on their movements on the 20-year-old national bowler vows to give others a run for their money at Malaysian Open court,” said the 2002 Japan Open champion.
Chan was also the 2000 French Open champion, 1997 Asian Junior Champion and 1996 World Junior Championship champion.
“Kuching is the final and sixth stop for AKB after Penang, Kelantan, Kuala Lumpur, Johor and Sabah.
“We are selecting 60 players from the six stops for the Kuala Lumpur Intensive Training Camp after which the number will be trimmed to the final 30 who will have the chance to attend twoweek rigorous training outside the country,’ he added.
Participation in this year’s AKV to date has also reached the 2,000 mark.
Since 2012, AKB has had more than 15,000 children smashing through the selection camps and top Sarawakian junior seeds including U16 Erika Vallensia Andrew and Kenyson Joseph Lojir as well as U14 players Shawn Hui and Carlster Cleve are all past participants who have gained valuable lessons and experience from the coaching programme.
It has also brought a significant effect on the participants where 70 per cent of badminton students ar Bukit Jalil Sports School are AKV participants and 83 per cent of the total allocation for Malaysian badminton students at the Singapore National Sports School are AKV participants.
One hundred and seventy-seven outstanding participants have also undergone a two-week intensive rigorous training at National Training Centre in Tokyo, Japan under the stewardship of Japan national coach Park Joo-Bong.
The AKV programme is a collaboration between Astro Kasih Foundation, Ministry of Education Malaysia, Ministry of Youth and Sports Malaysia and the Badminton Association of Malaysia.
We are evaluating the participants based on their basic skills on the court and their general attitude. — Chan Chong Ming, Astro Kem Badminton head coach