‘Big mistake’
Joo-bong: V Shem-Wee Kiong shouldn’t have been split up
ODENSE ( Denmark): Doubles legend Park Joo-bong believes Malaysia have made a big mistake by splitting national No. 1 pair Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong.
And the South Korean, who is Japan’s head coach, believes that the decision will see Malaysia struggle in men’s doubles for at least another year.
“I’m surprised by the decision. Why did Malaysia split their top pair when there are so many major events next year?” asked JooBong, who is with the Japanese team at the Denmark Open in Odense.
“V Shem-Wee Kiong are the defending champions at the Denmark Open. And there are no Malaysian representatives this time. That’s sad,” said Joo- bong, the former Olympic champion and a two-time gold medallist in the men’s doubles at the World Championships.
Former world No. 1 V Shem-Wee Kiong enjoyed a brilliant year last season. Besides the silver at the Rio Olympics, they also emerged champions at the Denmark Open and World Superseries Finals in Dubai.
But a knee injury to Wee Kiong hampered their progress this year. Wee Kiong-V Shem lost to Japanese No. 1 Takeshi Kamura-Keigo Sonoda twice at the Sudirman Cup. They also lost in the second round at the World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, in August.
Wee Kiong-V Shem’s lack of results did not sit too well with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) and they were split up in September.
“I’m still baffled. How can the form of the Olympic silver medallists drop so drastically within a year?
“Injuries can be managed. It’s normal for doubles players to have issues but it can be resolved. It takes time,” said Joo-bong.
Joo-bong added that Malaysia were lagging behind the world’s best in men’s doubles because they kept changing players, coaches and coaching structures.
“I thought Malaysia did the right thing when they teamed up Wee Kiong and V Shem (in 2014) after the exit of Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong.
“But in less than three years, Wee Kiong and V Shem are no longer a pair.
“In Japan, we don’t simply change coaches or players. Everyone is given time to produce results.
“We don’t change an Olympic-medal winning pair or a coach just like that,” said the 52-year-old Joo-bong, who coached the Malaysian team from 2000-2003.
“Look at Denmark’s top pair Mathias BoeCarsten Mogensen. They are playing together for the 13th year and they’re still doing great despite all the challenges.”
Joo-bong, however, hopes to see Malaysia produce some formidable pairs to make the sport more interesting.
“It’ll be good to see how the new Malaysian pairs fare in the next few tournaments,” he said.
V Shem will play with Teo Ee Yi while Wee Kiong has been teamed up with Ong Yew Sin. And they will make their debuts at the French Open in Paris next Wednesday.