‘I’ll do it my way’
Norza will continue to push players and coaches for results
KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Norza Zakaria will stick with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) through thick and thin.
That’s his promise as he bids to restore the fortunes of Malaysian badminton – with the ultimate goal of striking a rich vein of form at the 2020 Olympic Games.
But Norza will continue to do it his way – to fast track the sport’s progress.
“The other countries are going fast like the Shinkansen (bullet train) in a speed of 200kph. If we are still at 80kph or 120kph, we’ll never catch up,” said Norza.
“We need to catch up and quantum leap ourselves to the top. I know there is a limit to what we can do but our players and coaches must have the winning mentality and self-belief.
“The players and coaches will be the same if no one pushes them.”
Norza, who took over the job as BAM president in April 29 last year, said he would not leave the association in a lurch but would do all that he can within his powers to prevent players from getting too comfortable.
“My first tournament with the team as the president was last year’s Sudirman Cup (in May). I’ve followed their progress since. They are a talented lot, that’s why I get upset when they underperform,” said Norza.
“There is a gap that we have to manage between the expectations from the public, the sport’s rich history and the results from the players. We have to ask the question on what’s the perception and where we are as a badminton nation?
“The reality is that some of our players do not even know why they lose. Our coaches need to guide, lead and find ways to improve the standard of our players. We have to be strategic and sophisticated in our approaches.
“We’ve state-of-the-art training facilities, our own cafeteria, hostel, world-class coaches. We are giving the best to the players.
“I’ve sourced for sponsors to manage our RM30-RM40mil operational cost per year to produce world-class shuttlers. Players cannot get comfortable because they have responsibilities to the nation.
“The ultimate goal is the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 but along the way, I want to see fighting spirit and good results at the Commonwealth Games, Thomas Cup Finals and Asian Games.”
Norza is hoping that by putting all players – juniors and seniors – under one roof at the state-of-theart Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM), it will result in an expansion of talents and an end to the reliance on the same old players.
“Coaches take the safe approaches by depending on the same players. But we need to invest in the future by having more players in our stable,” he said.
“In the future, we will identify our players based on performances and no more on seniority. It’s all about creating a new way forward.”
Yesterday, Norza sealed a new partnership with Bank Islam to boost the national development programme over four years.
The bank credited RM300,000 to BAM’s account and Norza also launched the introduction of the bank’s new Visa BAM Debit Card-i.
“Bank Islam has 149 branches throughout the country. Every sale of the card will see BAM getting a cut of RM2.
“They’re also sponsoring RM300,000 for this year and we’ll discuss the possibilities of extending this sponsorship.”