KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 23 (Bernama) – The national badminton contingent continues to show consistent improvement throughout the year, and the Road To Gold (RTG) Committee will continue its support for the athletes through additional services, including funding for sports science and recovery equipment.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS), the third RTG meeting this year, chaired by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh, also approved several other forms of support for the national badminton players, including chiropractor treatment for Pearly Tan and pre-rehabilitation treatment for Toh Ee Wei.
So far, the achievements of national badminton players have seen the men’s doubles pair, Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, climb to second in the world rankings after reaching five finals this season, winning three titles and finishing as runners-up twice, which is a career-best record for them.
“Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun also won the Indonesia Masters and Malaysia Masters, in addition to reaching a career-high ranking of No. 6 in the world. In the women’s doubles, Pearly-Thinaah made history as the first Malaysian pair to win a silver medal at the World Championships in Paris, in addition to being ranked No. 2 in the world with five final appearances this season.
“The mixed doubles pair, Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei, also achieved a major success by becoming Malaysia’s first world champions in that event and are now ranked No. 3 in the world,” the statement said.
For the professional badminton squad, RTG is working with the team to find a new training base and has approved the request by Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani for an additional sparring partner.
“Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin is now ranked No. 3 in the world. The mixed doubles pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai also remains in the top 10 of the world ranking at No. 8,” it said.
In squash, the RTG has approved funding for S. Sivasangari to continue training in Prague, Czech Republic, which has had a positive impact as she finished as the runner-up at the Grasshopper Cup and reached the semi-finals of the London Squash Classic, placing her at No. 8 in the world.
In addition, the national men’s squash player Ng Eain Yow continues to solidify his position after finishing as a runner-up at the Squash On Fire and is now ranked No.12 in the world.
Meanwhile, KBS announced that cyclist Shah Firdaus Sahrom is still undergoing right knee rehabilitation at the National Sports Institute (ISN) with continued RTG funding. Nurul Izzah Izzati excelled with two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze at the Asian Track Cycling Championships (ATC), in addition to breaking the Asian record in the 1km Time Trial event, placing her at No. 10 in the world rankings.
In weightlifting, Mohd Aniq Kasdan, who is still recovering from a shoulder injury, still managed to bring home a silver medal in the 60kg category at the Commonwealth Championships. RTG has approved continuous treatment funding at ISN and the placement of a dedicated physical fitness officer.
The national archery team also performed remarkably, with Nurul Azreena Mohamad Fazil, who is still undergoing physiotherapy for a shoulder injury, maintaining her No.12 world ranking.
The statement said the meeting was also attended by the President of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria; KBS Secretary-General, Datuk Ts. Dr. Nagulendran Kangayatkarasu; National Sports Council Director-General Jefri Ngadirin; and Chief Executive Officer of ISN, Dr. Vellapandian Ponnusamy.
Also present were former badminton legend Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei and hockey legend Datuk Mirnawan Nawawi, while Datuk Nicol David participated in the meeting virtually.
Earlier, the same statement said the meeting discussed the latest reports from the National Sports Associations on the status of the athletes, the current developments of RTG support services, and the review of all additional applications submitted by athletes and/or associations.
–BERNAMA
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