KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 — The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) will send a squad comprising national and professional shuttlers for the two mixed team tournaments this year.
BAM singles coaching director Wong Choong Hann said the two tournaments are the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships (BAMTC) in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates from Feb 14-19 and the Sudirman Cup in Suzhou, China from May 14-21.
“I think BAM will make the official announcement (list of players) soon,” he told reporters after a meeting with the National Sports Council (NSC), here, today.
Choong Hann also said that they had discussed (the matter) with several key players to get a clearer picture of how both parties can join forces in both tournaments.
“This includes how to conserve energy as well as how to prepare themselves physically and mentally for the second half of the year.
“It’s going to be a busy 2023 season if we look at the 2024 Olympic Games qualification period, which begins in May, not just for us but the professional shuttlers have also fixed their plans.
Asked if national men’s singles professional ace Lee Zii Jia will join the squad, Choong Han replied: “I’ll let you (media) know later.”
In the 2019 edition of the BAMTC in Hong Kong, BAM sent their second stringers and Malaysia lost 3-0 to eventual champions China in the quarter-finals.
Meanwhile, the 45-year-old Choong Hann said the meeting with the NSC today was to discuss preparations for the three upcoming multi-sports events — 2023 SEA Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia; 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China; and 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.
“We want to see how the whole collaboration between BAM, NSC and the National Sports Institute can support the players, especially in qualifying for Paris 2024,” he said. — Bernama
