KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 — On entering the critical phase of facing the Paris 2024 Olympic Games test, the national badminton squad will attend "tuition” classes by undergoing additional training at night.

Academy of Badminton Malaysia (ABM) coaching director Rexy Mainaky said the additional training will be held two or three times a week involving all players under the auspices of the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) at the request of players such as Soh Wooi Yik of men’s doubles team.

However, he said the frequency of night training, apart from the morning and afternoon sessions, will depend on the players’ condition because he does not want them to suffer injuries or illness.

"So far, we have had two or three days of midnight training, but we haven’t received confirmation on Friday because there may be court bookings from external parties.

"We will give priority to players in the RTG (Road to Gold programme) for this month until they leave for France. We may adjust the training time and other players should also understand,” he told reporters after a training session at ABM in Bukit Kiara here, today.

The national squad will then camp for 10 days in the Aire-sur-la-Lys, France starting July 10 to undergo a pre-Olympic training camp ahead of the world’s biggest games, which will take place from July 23 to August 11.

"Training at the centre for that long is to get used to the conditions there (including the environment and the time difference). It is to ensure that the players are fully prepared and fully focused, the location is also in a quiet area,” he added.

The BAM players who will compete in the Paris Olympics in the hunt for the country’s first gold medal are the 2022 world men’s doubles champion Aaron Chia-Wooi Yik, the country’s leading women’s doubles Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah and the country’s number one mixed doubles Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei.

Malaysia will also be represented by two professional players, former All England champion Lee Zii Jia (men’s singles) and former World Junior Championship champion Goh Jin Wei (women’s singles).

Meanwhile, Rexy said Wooi Yik wants to stay at ABM until he leaves for France on July 10, so that he can give full focus and avoid distractions.

"It’s a very positive move as he realises that he needs time to focus more before the Olympics. Maybe to feel calmer here than outside (home) and to do extra training,” he said. — Bernama