KUALA LUMPUR: The BA of Malaysia (BAM) has officially pressed the panic button after failing to win a single medal at last month’s Asian Junior Championships, and are now revamping their youth programme.
The national body is considering drafting in shuttlers as young as 13 to fast-track their development.
At the Asian Juniors, none of the Malaysian players managed to reach the quarter-finals in men’s singles, men’s doubles or women’s singles.
The dismal outing has prompted BAM president Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz to propose a return to the body’s original system of bringing in players at 13, keeping them in the junior set-up until 18.
BAM had switched to recruiting at 16 through national trials — largely due to budget constraints — but Tengku Zafrul insists the earlier pathway is more effective.
His proposal has also won the backing of national singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen and doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky.
“That’s my view. I’ve presented it to the council. Now I’m giving them time to think it through, and I will continue engaging with them,” said Tengku Zafrul after the BAM council meeting at Academy Badminton Malaysia in Bukit Kiara on Saturday.
“There are pros and cons, of course, but for me it makes sense to start again and focus on younger players.
“The coaches have also stressed this — you can’t expect overnight results if you don’t have a strong grassroots pipeline in place.
“The only way forward is to invest more resources in grassroots development, and that means working closely with states, schools, universities, as well as clubs and academies.’
Tengku Zafrul hopes the revamped programme can begin as early as next year but stressed the need for proper funding and state-level support.
“Ideally, we should be ready by next year — but what’s most important is having a clear pathway moving forward,” he said.
“We need the funding, and we need the right programme in place. We must also engage with parents, sponsors, schools, and the State BAs before implementing it.
“The good thing is that several corporate sponsors have already shown interest in supporting grassroots development.”
While the revamp will take time, BAM has already moved to address players’ allowances.
Beginning next month, the monthly amount will be raised by RM300 to RM1,000.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
