HK Open 2003

Whilst sitting in the stands quite high up, I just happened to glance around.
Above me was this gentleman.

He was gracious enough to take a photo with me.

Other people around were a bit curious to know why I would take a picture with him. Do you guys know the anser to these questions?

1) Why should he be recognisable? (i.e. what is his job)

2) where else has he worked before?

3) What is his name?

Is he a single coach? Did he work for the Chinese National Team? Did he show up in the Syd Oly Video men's single semi-final and final? Or is he the legendary Rudy H.?

Originally posted by Cheung
HK Open 2003

Whilst sitting in the stands quite high up, I just happened to glance around.
Above me was this gentleman.

He was gracious enough to take a photo with me.

Other people around were a bit curious to know why I would take a picture with him. Do you guys know the anser to these questions?

1) Why should he be recognisable? (i.e. what is his job)

2) where else has he worked before?

3) What is his name?

To me, he looks like the guy who was coach (wearing a flat cap) when Chen Hong won the All England 2002, but I don't know who he is.

An honour Cheung, to have a photo taken with the legend

Tang Xian Hu.

He is what many fans will call "The Thing" in the 50's early 60's? His badminton prowess was well known and admired in those days. Hailed from Indonesia and helped raise the badminton standards there until the late President Sukarno became fiercely anti-Communist and drove away many ethnic Chinese from Indonesia. Tang returned to his roots in China and apparently helped coach the Chinese National Team and made their men's singles players unbeatable at the world stage. Tang never fulfilled his ambition to beat then All-England champion, Rudy Hartono, even when he was past his thirties as World Badminton then was divided into two camps, Asia and the West(?), and the two were never at peace. Indonesia somehow did not belong to the Asian camp.

Tang is so versatile as a coach that he also coached China's ladies singles players and we all know how strong they are. He is now coaching the men's doubles and we can see how their pairs have improved in such a relatively short time.

I think "Viver", "Bbn" and other "veteran" BFers can contribute more on the Thing than I do.

Btw, Cheung, you look more like an academic, very studious but dangerous with the racket, he, he, he.

To me he is simply the best badminton player ever. Can't find a player to compare to him, probably only Hou Jia Chang. Consider myself lucky being able to see both of them play. Even over 30's then, their skills were simply out of this world.

If he important or not? It is quite possible that he is one of the most important piece for Chinese success in the next Thomas Cup.

Cheung, being able to talk to Tang Xian Fu I believe there must have been a good exchange of badminton views. :D

there is a great article on the man himself. does anyone want to have the honor of translating it for the non Chinese reading audience?

http://www.nanfangdaily.com.cn/nf/20031111/tyxw/200311110544.asp

why does he always wear a cap? viver, did he used to wear a cap?

I've never seen him wearing a cap before. Noticed this when he was coaching the Indonesian team. When caught on tape he always had a cap on.

more pics of the legend...

Xia doesn't look happy with whatever advice he's being given. Kwun, what sort of camera was being used here? The quality is so good in the last one that it looks like you've just taken the negative of a 35mm and got it transferred to jpeg (very expensive). The camera round your neck looks like a Nikon Digital SLR; maybe the D100?

Kwun, who is that lucky young man who got Tang's autograph? Is he a BFer?

The luck young man is Tang's godson. ;)

Originally posted by Loh
Kwun, who is that lucky young man who got Tang's autograph? Is he a BFer?

Loh, that young man is me. :)

the camera in use is a Sony P5 (i think), just a normal 3MP digital camera.

the camera around my neck is a Nikon F70/N70, a good old film camera. cannot afford a digital SLR.

Originally posted by Pete LSD
The luck young man is Tang's godson. ;)

to quote a friend of mine, "willing to be a slave for this man, for free"

Kwun

Sorry for not being able to recognize the handsome young man himself, a clue given earlier by Ynexfan 2003, which somehow eluded me.

It was not possible to get a close view of you and the others in the group photo which you posted sometime ago re the Vancouver BF Tournament as the images were too small.

Coincidentally, this time round, both you and Cheung appear so visibly and all credit goes to "The Thing". But you did not go to the HK Open. On which occasion did you take that photo with Tang?

The only moderator left to be introduced to us in pic is the "giant" Mag from way north. Wonder when he will show his face?

it was during the SC. most of the pics came out rather dull. only a couple of pics worthy of posting here...

Tang will retire from badminton scene in 2 years. so the chances of meeting this legend get slimmer and slimmer every day.

notice, 4 different pictures, 4 different caps. i wonder if he collects caps.... hm... maybe we should make a BC/BF cap just for Tang... hm.... hm... :)

Kwun...who is the gal behind the photo? Btw..how many cameras u bring to a tournament?

that is Gao Ling. the guy to the left is Chan Hing Dong, Chinese XD coach.

i only brought 2 cameras...

ok :) Maybe its his trademark wearing caps

So y do you wear a cap Cheung? :) HEhehe follow you idol?

Tang Xian Hu

Originally posted by kwun

Tang will retire from badminton scene in 2 years. so the chances of meeting this legend get slimmer and slimmer every day. [/B]

I take your hint. The next time when Tang comes to Singapore, I'll make sure to take a pic with him, get his autograph and present him with a BF cap (provided you can get this done without further delay).

An Exclusive from Nanfang Ribao, reported by Liang Yan (Reporter) and
Xie Sude (Reporter Intern)

He's the Wonder Coach who produced a whole line of worldbeaters
Tang Xianhu: Fame and money no longer mean anything to me

At the age of 63, veteran coach Tang Xianhu is always the one who keeps
the lowest profile in the Chinese badminton team. Sporting a red cap
which covers more than half of his wisdom-lined face, Tang Xianhu likes
to sit at one corner of the gymnasium during training, overseeing the
team's training with his gentle words. Sometimes after training, he would
gather the men doubles players, and give his training debriefing while
the players huddle close together. At such occasions, no one outside of
the men doubles team are allowed to be present. Such openly secretive
ways of the Chinese men doubles team adds on to Tang Xianhu's mysterious
personality.


Treating Trainees As His Own Kids

According to the men doubles players, Tang Xianhu has never used harsh
words on them, or lost his temper with them. When asked about his good
temperament, Tang Xianhu laughed, "I'm old, and my body can no longer
withstand me working up a storm." Having dedicated half his lifetime to
badminton, Tang Xianhu is now afflicted with a coronary heart disease.
Everytime he gets angry, he would experience difficulty breathing.
"There will always be times when things do not go your way. Sometimes
the kids in the men doubles team would get me all worked up, but I just
cannot bring myself to give them a dressing down. If I do that, they
get nervous, and then I won't be able to get a word through, so all that
I can do is to take my medicine and calm myself down."
Having coached the Chinese men singles and women singles team, as well
as the Indonesian badminton team before that, Tang Xianhu the "Wonder
Coach" is widely known in the world of badminton. But when pressed by
reporters, he kept reiterating that he has no magic formula for
"transmuting stone into gold" (a Chinese idiom which means that you take
something ordinary, and turn it into something extraordinary --- I think
here the reporter is referring to the widely held (?) belief that Tang
Xianhu can take an average badminton player, and turn him or her into a
worldbeater). His only recipe is do his best in teaching through words
and actions. Tang Xianhu argues that it is very important to be able to
communicate with the players, because he feels that a coach not only
teaches the players skills and techniques, but most importantly, he must
be able to help the players realize and develop their potentials. This
is why he hopes that all his trainess would share with him their innermost
doubts, even doubts on the coach. Only then can they grasp what their
strengths and weaknesses are on court. In the Chinese sportsmen training
system, players undergo professional training at a very tender age. To
them, the coach plays the role of both teacher and father. Take the case
of Tang Xianhu: he not only demands his trainees to polish their badminton
skills, but also require them to have an upright character. Tang Xianhu
feels that only by fulfilling this dual role would he not have let the
players' parents down.

Specializing in Men Doubles Before His Retirement

Retiring as a professional player at the age of 37, and still making his
presence felt from outside the badminton court at the age of 63, Tang
Xianhu is a miracle in the Chinese sports arena. But no matter how
remarkable he has been, no man wins a fight against time. Tapping the
side of his head, Tang Xianhu lamented, "When you are old, you have no
choice but to admit you are old. My mind is no longer as sharp as what
it used to be, and when things pile up, I can sense that my brain becomes
knotted. In times like that, all I can do is to calm myself down."

Nevertheless, Tang Xianhu does have a secret weapon against the flow of
time: focus. When he was coaching the men singles team, Tang Xianhu
never asks about how the men doubles team is doing. Now that he is
coaching the men doubles team, it has also been a while since he watched
a men singles match. So says Tang Xianhu, in his famous line, "Only when
you are focussed on doing one thing can you then do it well." At the
eve of every major tournament, Tang Xianhu would pace along the passage
way in the spectators' stand. This is how he clear out his thoughts.
Before he retires, Tang Xianhu set himself a very definite goal: to bring
the Chinese men doubles out of its current doldrums, and then he would
retire two years later, whatever the outcome.

The Chinese team still has two long training periods before the Athens
Olympics. During this time, there are still some major problems that
require his attention. Although Tang Xianhu did not disclose in full
details what his plans are for the next phase of the training, he did
raise a specific example during the interview. "In the Hong Kong Open,
the Chinese men doubles pair Cai Yun-Fu Haifeng apparently did not know
how to take advantage of the draft when playing against the Indonesian
pair Sigit Budiarto-Tri Kusharyanto. They also need to improve the
quality of their serves. All this look like minor details, but they
will be the key in deciding whether our pairs make or break in future
tournaments." Doing things from bottom up has always been the style
of Tang Xianhu. When asked about the Athens Olympics next year, Tang
Xianhu said emphatically, "The Chinese men doubles player will perform."
The Chinese badminton team has always been worried about the stagnant
level of its men doubles. To be tasked with such a difficult assignment
just before his retirement, Tang Xianhu shows no signs of worrying that
he would not live up to his name of the "Wonder Coach". "I have had
failures in training teams, but nobody remembers them; they only remember
all the success stories that I have had. When I received my assignment,
I had no second thoughts. If this is what I am asked to do, I will do it.
The thought of not making the mark and how it might affect my reputation
never crossed my mind." Having dedicated half a lifetime to badminton,
what's fame and money to Tang Xianhu?

Determined to Return to Fujian

Tang Xianhu does not speak very fluent Mandarin --- he still speaks with an
Indonesian accent. "When I was schooling, there are no schools teaching
Chinese in Indonesia. I learned Chinese only when I came back to China.
Even now I cannot speak the language well, and there are many characters
that I do not recognize. Sometimes I have to resort to Bahasa Indonesia
to express myself." After retiring as a professional player, Tang Xianhu
took up a coaching position in Indonesia, and returned to China only in
1997. Even now, many of the Indonesian players still miss their wise
old coach. As proud as he is, Taufik Hidayat felt that letting Tang
Xianhu leave Indonesia must surely be the most dumb thing that the PBSI
has done.

Although he was born and raised in Indonesia (his youngest son and daughter
were also born in Indonesia), Tang Xianhu cannot be sure whether he has
spent a larger part of his life in Beijing or in Indonesia. But he tell
himself all the time that he is Chinese, and said, "After I retire, I
must return to my ancestral home in Fujian to live the rest of my days."
Apparently, a lifetime with badminton is not enough for Tang Xianhu,
who cannot be separated from badminton even in his leisure time. When
resting at home, he would still watch the telecast of badminton tournaments,
and he never seems to get sick of it. "Badminton is my hobby. I am
truly fortunate to be able to blend my hobby in with my work."

Tang Xianghu has three children. His eldest daughter is 30 odd, and the
son and daughter borne of his second wife are now 11 and 8 years old
respectively. Because he spend most of his time with the team in Beijing,
Tang Xianhu has been living away from his wife and children who are in
Fujian. He feels guilty about not being able to be with them. "Such a
heavy burden I have placed on my wife."

Being away from his children most of the time, Tang Xianhu cherishes
deeply the precious few moments he does spend with them. The reporter
recalls seeing Tang Xianhu's daughter crying two years ago, and Tang
Xianhu still remembers why. "It's all Gong Ruina's fault, teasing her
and saying that if she keeps eating sweets, she will not have pretty
teeth. That's how she started crying." As a compensation from a derelict
father, Tang Xianghu dotes on his children. "I won't say I am spoiling
them. We have not been well to do, so now that times are getting better,
surely we want to let our children enjoy the better things in life."
However, when asked whether he harbors hope of his young son and daughter
following in his footsteps, Tang Xianhu bares his reservations. "The
kids have had a good life, and won't be able to withstand hardship. That
is a great obstacle to making it in life."

Phew! Sure was one looooooong article!

cheongsa, thanks again for such an excellent translation! it is an excellent article.

(off topic discussion moved here :

http://www.badmintonforum.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12521

)

Ha cheongsa, u beat me to it. Your translation sounds so much more natural than mine. But it's good to know that our choice of words are pretty similar. :) I'm taking it as a practice for my exam in two weeks.

Great Article

Originally posted by cheongsa
Phew! Sure was one looooooong article! ohh, thank you, thank you:cool: