The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Syafiq out to cash in on rare European outing
- James to have heart-to-heart talk with BAM supremo Nadzmi
- Coach Kim Her splits up Hee Chun-Wee Kiong combination
| Syafiq out to cash in on rare European outing Posted: 02 Jul 2011 06:03 PM PDT PETALING JAYA: The San Marino Open and the City of Barcelona International Trophy will provide the national men bowlers a rare international outing, due to financial constraints faced by the Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress (MTBC). The San Marino Open began yesterday and will run until July 10 while the Barcelona tournament will be from July 12-17. One man looking to cash in on the European outing is Mohd Syafiq Ridhwan Abdul Malek, who is hoping to win both tournaments and improve on his ranking in the European Bowling Tour (EBT). Syafiq, winner of the Brunswick Euro Challenge in France in March, is ninth in the standings on 250 points. Finland's Osku Palermaa sits on top of the standings with 590 points. "I just played in one EBT tournament and managed to be in the top 10 until now. "I want to go all out and improve on my ranking in San Marino and Barcelona," said Syafiq. "We don't have many overseas tournaments now and, even if we go, not all of us (men) can go." Besides Syafiq, the other men bowlers for the European trip are Zulmazran Zulkifli, Adrian Ang and Alex Liew. "I understand that the focus will be on the women this year as they have the World Championships in September," said Syafiq. "That's why I intend to make full use of every chance that comes my way." The national bowlers are expected to leave for San Marino on Tuesday. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| James to have heart-to-heart talk with BAM supremo Nadzmi Posted: 02 Jul 2011 06:03 PM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk James Selvaraj is looking forward to meeting Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president Datuk Seri Nadzmi Mohd Salleh before deciding whether to accept the high performance director job on a full-time basis. James yesterday expressed surprise over BAM's decision to appoint a full-time high performance director. On Friday, the BAM exco, chaired by Nadzmi, admitted that their decision to hire a part-time high performance director was not working out and that they wanted bring in someone on a full-time basis. Ironically, it was BAM who offered James, a senior manager with Bata Malaysia, the job on a part-time basis. The 61-year-old James said he had a lot of things to highlight to Nadzmi before committing to a full-time job. "I am surprised with this decision as the BAM were clear about my position when they offered me the job. I do not like to wash dirty linen in public but I have been working as a high performance director for the last 10 months and I still do not know in what my role is," said James. "Since I started, the selections of athletes and coaches for all the tournaments were not done by me. It was done by BAM officials. "The high performance director is the one with knowledge about the game ... not the administrators. Don't you think I should be the one to decide on who should go where? After all, I was selected for my knowledge in the technical part of the game and my experience. "Surprisingly though, all the coaches have been directed to hand in the names of their players for the Kedah Open (July 13-17) to me. Finally, I have been given the recognition and due respect to approve the selection of the players. But why now – now after 10 months?" James said there were many other factors that needed to be considered before he would want to become a full-time high performance director. "Will I get a good package ... better than what Bata is offering me? I have been with the company for 31 years. I have to re-look everything. More importantly, I want to know my job description," he said. James said that he respected Nadzmi's decision to discuss the matter after the World Championships, which will be held in London from Aug 8-14. "I have agreed with Nadzmi to discuss the matter after the world meet. I hope to meet with him alone. I want to have a heart-to-heart talk with him. For now, I will focus on preparing the team for the world event," he said. James will join the team, led by world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei, to Bath University for their centralised training from July 27-Aug 4 and he will continue the journey with the team to Wembley for the world meet. This will be the second time that he is following the team overseas since he began work in September. He was with the natioal team at last week's Indonesian Open, which Chong Wei won for the fourth time. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Coach Kim Her splits up Hee Chun-Wee Kiong combination Posted: 02 Jul 2011 06:02 PM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: National back-up coach Tan Kim Her has finally put an end to the miserable partnership of Mak Hee Chun-Tan Wee Kiong after the duo's form took a dip following a misunderstanding between them. Kim Her will now look for new partners for Hee Chun and Wee Kiong after the World Championships, which will be held in London from Aug 8-14. Hee Chun-Wee Kiong were once the country's top pair, rising steadily to as high as 21st in the world rankings. However, bad vibes between the duo following uninspiring performances at the Guangzhou Asian Games spoiled everything. Kim Her gave them several chances to mend their ways, with the recent Singapore Open being their last platform to salvage their partnership. Instead, the duo crashed out in the second round. It was obvious to all that their partnership was beyond repair. The duo started playing together early last year are now ranked 43rd in the world. "I spoke up about their future as a pair at the coaching and training committee meeting (on Thursday) and we agreed that it was best to split them up," said Kim Her yesterday. "Mak and Tan have their own specialities but it's unfortunate they do not have good chemistry. In doubles play, it is important to trust your partner and to have mutual respect. Skill alone is not enough." Kim Her said he would tinker with the other partnerships to accommodate both Hee Chun and Wee Kiong. "The only pair that will stick together are Lim Khim Wah-Goh Wei Shem. They are progressing well. We will continue to send them out for tournaments to help establish themselves as a reliable pair. We will look at other partnerships," said Kim Her. "I will have a clearer picture on the new partners for Hee Chun and Wee Kiong after the world meet." The other pairs under Kim Her's charge are Ow Yao Han-Chooi Kah Ming, Pang Zheng Lin-Yew Hong Kheng, Tan Wee Tat-Tan Yip Jiun, Teo Kok Siang and Chan Peng Soon. However, Kah Ming and Kok Siang are injured. Peng Soon is on a loan to the mixed doubles department as he has seeks to qualify for the next year's London Olympic Games with Goh Liu Ying. Meanwhile, Kim Her has listed the pairing of Hee Chun-Hong Kheng and Wee Kiong-Yao Han for the Kedah Open, which will be held from July 13-17. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
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