07/06/2026

theSun on Sunday JUNE 7, 2026

SPORTS 15

Time to get tough BAM stresses discipline as players misconduct issues resurface

Perak eye top-five finish at Sukma

PERAK is targeting at least 50 gold medals and a top-five finish at the 2026 Malaysia Games (Sukma) in Selangor this August, a sig nificant improvement from its seventh-place finish at the previous edition in Sarawak. State Education, Higher Education, Youth and Sports Committee chairman Datuk Khairudin Abu Hanipah said the target, how ever, is not official yet and was based on pre liminary assessments by managers and coaches across the 37 sports to be contested by the Perak contingent. “We will conduct further evaluations based on the athletes’ current performances before announcing the official target. We want to improve on our achievement at the previous Sukma in Sarawak,” he said. Khairuddin also added Perak contingent is expected to field 826 athletes at the Games, scheduled from Aug 15 to 24. “Perak will not compete in every event, but our focus will be on the combat sports, as well as athletics, shooting, archery and e-sports,” he said, while judging aspect in subjective events would receive serious attention to ensure fair competitions. – Bernama

BADMINTON Association of Malaysia (BAM) performance committee chairman Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei believes the newly tested men’s doubles combinations could offer Malaysia its best chance of winning a first Olympic gold medal at the Los Angeles 2028 Games (LA28). He said the move to experiment with new partnerships ahead of next year’s Olympic qualification campaign was aimed at identifying the strongest combinations capable of ending Malaysia’s long wait for Olympic gold. “In previous meetings, I stressed that decisions should not be made at the last minute because next year will be crucial with the start of Olympic qualification,” he said after attending the BAM council meet ing at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM) at Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur yester day. He was referring to BAM’s decision to pair Aaron Chia with Tee Kai Wun and Soh Wooi Yik with Man Wei Chong in several upcoming tournaments as part of its long term planning ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. “Normally, partner changes are made around January in preparation for the Olympics. However, I told the coaches not to wait until January but to begin the trials earlier, either before or after this year’s Asian Games. “In the coaches’ view, these combina tions have the potential to deliver the country’s first Olympic gold medal,” he said. Chong Wei said several badminton powerhouses had begun experimenting with new partnerships immediately after the Paris 2024 Olympics to identify the best combinations for the next Olympic cycle. “Many countries started forming new partnerships after the Paris Olympics in search of the best combinations for the next cycle. “I believe we are already somewhat late, and the decision to form new pairings THE Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) Council yesterday reaf firmed the importance of discipline, professionalism and accountability among national shuttlers following dis ciplinary issues involving several play ers. BAM president Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said the emphasis was critical to ensuring every player possesses the right mindset for the continued growth and development of Malaysian badminton. He revealed that disciplinary issues identified so far involved players from both the senior and junior squads, although the national governing body has chosen not to publicly disclose the identities of those concerned. “If possible, we do not want to reveal their names, but if you notice a player is not participating in a tournament, it may be because disciplinary action is being taken against him,” he said after chairing the BAM Council meeting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. According to him, among the firm measures decided upon was a require ment for all national players to reside at the Academy Badminton Malaysia

to completely restrict athletes’ freedom. He said players are allowed to leave the academy daily for personal matters but are required to return to the hostel by 10.30pm. He explained that on Saturdays and Sundays, players are permitted to return home to spend time with their families before resuming training. “And if they have an event, I think they can inform us if they are returning late because they have a dinner func tion or are receiving an award,” he told reporters after the BAM Council meet ing. He drew comparisons with badmin ton powerhouses such as China, South Korea and Japan, which impose much stricter disciplinary systems on their national athletes. He also said that top national men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao had been issued a final warning over disciplinary issues raised by the coaching team through training reports. The badminton legend stressed that if such issues recur, BAM would not hesitate to ask any player involved to “pack their bags” and leave the associa tion immediately. – Bernama

(ABM) hostel, except for those who are married. He explained that any BAM player who refuses to comply with the directive without a valid reason will not be allowed to participate in any international tournament. Asked about the players’ reaction to the directive, he said the majority wel comed the decision, although a small number had expressed disagreement. “Only two or three players disagreed for certain reasons, but after reviewing the matter, we found that the reasons given were not sufficiently strong. “Unless there are compelling issues such as medical problems or the need to care for sick parents, they are required to return to the hostel,” he stressed. He added that BAM would not hesi tate to take drastic action, including dropping players from the national squad, if they fail to show improvement in their attitude or repeat offences in the future. Meanwhile, BAM performance com mittee chairman Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei said the policy requiring players to reside at the ABM hostel retains an ele ment of flexibility and is not intended

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06/06/2026

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New doubles combo best bet for gold: Chong Wei

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different strategies,” he said However, he said Aaron-Wooi Yik and Wei Chong-Kai Wun would remain with their original partners for several major international tournaments using their cur rent world rankings. “In terms of rankings, they will use the national ranking system. For the World Championships, they will remain with their original partners because they qualified as those pairs. “However, we need to think long term, especially with Olympic qualification beginning next year. “It is better for us to try it now than next year when the Olympic qualification period starts,” Tengku Zafrul added. – Bernama

is not an easy one to make,” he said. Nevertheless, he did not rule out retain ing the new pairings through to LA28 if they deliver positive results. BAM president Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said the move would not affect the world rankings of Aaron-Wooi Yik, who are currently ranked world No. 2, and Wei Chong-Kai Wun, who are ranked sixth. “This matter was not discussed in detail today, but Rexy Mainaky (national doubles coaching director) had discussed it with the council members about a month ago. “I fully support the coaching team’s decision to try new scratch pairs. We need to give the coaches the opportunity to test

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