I don't know what sort of arrangement Malaysian badminton will evolve into. Will there be more clubs like KLRC competing with BAM to try to produce their own champions? Will such 'club' champions compete with BAM players nationally to determine who deserves the honour to represent the country in team tournaments like the Thomas/Uber/Sudirman Cups games like the Commonwealth, Asian and Olympic Games? What about individual tournaments like the SS series? I suppose the clubs will have to finance their own players. Will it evolve into something like the Indonesian system, with the clubs competing with PBSI players? What about truly independent players like Taufik Hidayat? I consider ZZ to be a 'club' player and not an independent player like TH or 'uncle' WCH now. It will take such clubs a great deal of commitment and resources to support promising players to be developed into champions. Even BAM with the government machinery behind them has found it difficult going.
I don't know what sort of arrangement Malaysian badminton will evolve into. Will there be more clubs like KLRC competing with BAM to try to produce their own champions? Will such 'club' champions compete with BAM players nationally to determine who deserves the honour to represent the country in team tournaments like the Thomas/Uber/Sudirman Cups games like the Commonwealth, Asian and Olympic Games? What about individual tournaments like the SS series? I suppose the clubs will have to finance their own players. Will it evolve into something like the Indonesian system, with the clubs competing with PBSI players? What about truly independent players like Taufik Hidayat? I consider ZZ to be a 'club' player and not an independent player like TH or 'uncle' WCH now. It will take such clubs a great deal of commitment and resources to support promising players to be developed into champions. Even BAM with the entire government machinery behind them has found it difficult going. LCW will be their best hope to win an Olympic gold an it took a very long time and there is no guarantee that it will happen in London in a year' time. Now KRLC is trying to do so with ZZ and one can imagine how difficult it is as the other badminton powerhouses are also doing likewise. So does it make sense for KRLC to cooperate with BAM to capitalize on their respective resources for a common objective?
Well, KLRC should be able to afford a quality fitness and stamina trainer to complement Hadi. The NSC team of experts does not seem to make any difference to BAM players. Something s not quite right when not a few of them become injury-prone with the NSC input. The players have to have more tournament exposure to develop their competitive experience to be world class players. Look at Japanese players. It looks like they plan ahead to peak in OG12 by sending them to many tournaments and they are winning matches and creating upsets and generally improving with each tournament. The only exception is Tago. He played only 8 tournaments in the last 12 months, (less than veteran PG) and going nowhere. His sponsor must be very poor compared to Sho Sasaki s.
With Zulfadli's AJC win, KLRC should be able to get more sponsors $$$$, at least for Zul. Plus, less pressure in KLRC, as stated by the players who have gone over from BAM. Datuk Andrew doesnt seem hard up for the wins, he's rich enough. I think Zul will have very hard time adjusting to the many rules & regulations BAM has if he joins. THe main problem is the 'politicians'. Many accusations were hurled at KLRC & Datuk Andrew when Gan, TBS, OSH, LWF tried quiting BAM in 2008. Of course taken into account, Datuk Andrew would have had played his own politics behind the scenes.
klrc would have no problem hiring extra expert given zz recent good performances and it would be a goods idea if they can tie up with nsc and use their facilities . Anyway the main reason why zz stays in klrc was the tournament exposures given . and yes this is one thing that most elite players in bam lack . As for nsc input, yes something isn't right here. When players lost they asked for reports and after the so call experts meet up, they 'tamba kuat' (more workout) and well, what do the coaches do? They follow 'orders' thus when they still lost, the coaches still got their contract renewed LOL
Lose=More workout? If that is really what the nsc experts been inputing, then I guess BAM won't need to hire sport scientist from Uni. My 10 years old nephew can do a better job than that. I think KLRC is financially quite rich... I heard the founder dig gold. So if he is willing to invest hiring qualifying sport scientists, gym trainers and sport doctors. KLRC is a good palce for ZZ to stay actually. Forget about BAM, god knows who they hire to do the training programme. Just look at the players injury frequency and the CTC committee members with zero experience in competitive badminton. Gosh! but at least this committee provides some good entertainment for the public...
Dig gold, you make me laugh .. in hokkien, it means nose picking Anyway klrc boss owns a few gold mine and I certainly hope he increases his budget for training The last time I heard wasn't good
Will there be more clubs competing with BAM to try to produce their own champions? . Loh, just reading what you have posted, it can be seen that you think that KLRC is competing against BAM, and/or Indonesian clubs are competing against PBSI. I see things differently. I see KLRC members/ organisers as people trying to establish themselves a family of Badminton players/enthusiastic fans. It's similar to BadmintonCentral; we are like a family of Badminton enthusiastic fans. If we do not think that BC is competing against BWF when making Badminton suggestions/info, then we should not think that KLRC is competing against BAM when providing Badminton coaching at their club. We can also compare private schools versus government schools. The private schools are established not to compete against government schools; but are established because the founders thought of creating a family of students with certain objectives, whether for their own religions, cultures, languages, etc, ...... An additional example: When a certain private tuition academy is established to aid school children in their studies, we also cannot say that that private tuition academy is competing against government/private schools. To me, BAM is a government institution. In Malaysia, we should be glad if we can find more private clubs which can complement BAM. Currently, KLRC has done well; not only that they are catering for Malaysian players, but also for some overseas players as well. .
Hi Chris, Maybe you wish to take a look at the KLRC website on its mission statement: http://www.klrc.com.my/about.html "In sports, KLRC’s contribution is by way of providing sponsorship and funds (for the purpose of education or otherwise) to deserving sportspersons/individuals to assist in nurturing their capabilities. KLRC holds the idea that there is value in each person and therefore encourages individual development in all areas. Our mission is to foster, support, educate and encourage the development of young talents, particularly in the area of racket sports by providing funds to assist in nurturing their capabilities. All these are done with the hope of creating a continuous pool of talent who will one day bring pride and joy to their respective nations in an area where excellence by an individual is achievable and whereby champions are made." Unfortunately I can't find the KLRC's Constitution and who else are its members aside from Andrew Kam.
And you may wish to compare KLRC with BAM whose objectives, etc are as follows: http://www.bam.org.my/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=96&Itemid=54 Vision Mission and Goals The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) is the sport's governing body in Malaysia, affiliated to the Badminton World Federation (BWF), the Badminton Asia Confederation (BAC) and the Olympic Council of Malaysia. BAM is registered with the Sports Commissioner of Malaysia under the Sports Development Act 1997 of the Laws of Malaysia. Vision That badminton will be a vibrant and popular sport in Malaysia that contributes towards nation building and social development by reaching out to all Malaysians in its pursuit of glory for the country. Mission ■To have a big pool of world class players ■To lift the standard of women players to that of China and Korea ■To have a bigger pool of back-up players for the men's team and the women's team ■To ensure consistent success in the international arena ■To develop a big pool of qualified international technical officials ■To implement development programmes from grass-root to national level ■To own fully integrated training centres at both national and state level ■To make badminton 'the sport' of the country Goals ■To encourage, promote and control the game of Badminton in Malaysia ■To manage and control badminton championships and competitions organised by BAM or by any approved body on behalf of BAM, BWF or BAC ■To ensure observance of rules and regulations in all state, national or international competitions organised in Malaysia ■To settle or adjudicate all disputes of affiliates ■To formulate, implement and enforce such Rules, Standing Orders, Bye-Laws and Regulations made under the BAM Constitution Now is KLRC the same as BAM? Or KLRC wants to be at least equal to BAM? BTW BadmintonCentral and BWF are two entirely different entities with different interests and objectives. So the question of competition is superfluous. But what KLRC is now trying to do is in direct competition with BAM. I shall return after my Sunday badminton session.
Seems he is going over to Li-Ning. The star Sunday 17/7: ------------------------------ By RAJES PAUL A sponsorship deal with Sunlight Li Ning, one of China’s top sporting brands, has put the smiles on the faces of the aspiring juniors in the Kuala Lumpur Badminton Association (KLBA). Yesterday, all the 74 budding youngsters under the state programme turned up when the KLBA signed a two-year sponsorship package with Li Ning in a ceremony at the Wisma OCM Hall here. Kuala Lumpur is the first state in Malaysia to come under Li Ning’s sponsorship. Li Ning sponsors a number of the world’s top stars, including China’s three-time men’s singles champion Lin Dan. Reigning Asian Junior champion Zulfadli Zulkifli said that KL team were thrilled with Li Ning coming in a big way to realise their dreams to become top players. “The junior players are all excited. They will enjoy the benefits of using many of Li Ning’s equipment. It will certainly motivate them to take their game to greater heights,” said the 18-year-old Zulfadli. Zulfadli, who is a club member of KLRC but trains three times a week with coach A. Shankar in Cheras under the KLBA programme, will also get to enjoy the perks with Li Ning after his contract with Ashaway ends in October. Mahender Kapoor, a Li Ning representative, met with Zulfadli in a separate meeting yesterday to negotiate with the youngster on a future collaboration. KLBA president Datuk Mohd Norza Zakaria said that the sponsorship boost from Li Ning would spur the state to produce more talented players for the country. “This is another new milestone for KLBA and we are very proud of our new relationship with Li Ning. The equipment sponsorship will do a world of good for our players,” he said. “KLBA is located at the heart and soul of the nation and we want to take up the responsibility of producing first class players for the country. “Our juniors have been doing well over the last one year and through our partnership with Li Ning, we hope to take their standard to an even higher level,” added Norza, who was elected as the president last year. The Kuala Lumpur team have shown marked improvement in their junior programme last year. The team, led by Zulfadli, are the two-time Inter-State champions and have won several titles in this year’s 100Plus National Junior Circuit. They have also produced several potential players for the Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS). Datuk Dr Al-Amin Majid, the deputy president of the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM), said that there would not be any conflict of interest between Li Ning and Yonex, the national team’s sponsor. “Penang’s team is sponsored by Gosen. It is good to see different sporting brands coming into the picture to support the development of badminton in our country. It augurs well for the sport. Only BAM players representing the country will have to abide by our rules,” said Al-Amin, who was present at the signing ceremony. Courtesy of The Star --------------------------
[h=2][/h] This is what Datuk Andrew Kam looks like nowadays. Prosperous look Full article : http://www.bharian.com.my/bharian/articles/ZulfadlibuktikegigihanKLRC/Article I like what Andrew Kam said in here : “Saya tubuhkan KLRC bukan kerana mahu berlawan dengan sesiapa termasuk Persatuan Badminton Malaysia (BAM), sebaliknya matlamat saya hanya satu iaitu membantu negara. Lagipun, saya minat dan cintakan badminton,” kata Andrew "I set up KLRC not to compete with anybody including BAM, but my objective was only 1 : to help the country. I'm also interested/passionate about & love badminton" Ketika ditanya sekiranya Zulfadli mahu keluar dari KLRC, Andrew menjawab: “Saya tidak boleh memaksa orang mencintai saya. Jadi, saya beri kebebasan kepadanya untuk membuat keputusan. Apa yang penting bukan saya atau KLRC, tetapi bakat yang ada padanya terus digilap dan saya mahu lagu Negaraku berkumandang dan Jalur Gemilang berkibar megah,” katanya. When asked if Zulfadli wants out from KLRC, Andrew answered " I cannot force others to love me. So, I give freedom to him to make the decision. What is important is not me or KLRC, but the talent in him is groomed/polished. I want the Negaraku to be sung & Jalur Gemilang(Msian flag) to fly high" Hahaha, smart PR answer Datuk Andrew. Anyway, finally he can talk louder.
I think KLRC will be complementing BAM in a more meaningful way if it continues to provide financial support, as stated in its objectives, and training facilities to develop young talents. Once these young talents are ready for the bigger things they should be transferred to BAM to transform them into national and international players who can bring glory to the nation. Although I'm not sure of the current arrangement in Malaysia, it seems to me that young talents from the various state badminton associations have been providing BAM with all these raw materials to be polished. I believe there are sports schools, private badminton academies and other grassroots organisations helping the state associations in its work of providing BAM with the potential players all these years and it makes good sense. BAM, with its many years of experience that includes the successful development of world-class players that have won international honours for the country, already has the huge badminton training machinery in existence and the easy availability of expert knowledge in other sports areas from the Sports Council. Through the years BAM has built up close relationship with other like-minded institutions from other countries and BWF. Indeed, like many institutions, BAM has its ups and downs and politics have invariably invaded its workings in the past and continue to do so now. So less politics from the outside may help BAM stabilise itself and focus on the more important issues. Don't forget Malaysia is still one of the world badminton powerhouses although other hitherto lesser-known badminton countries are trying to catch up. If KLRC wants to compete with BAM to produce world-class players for Malaysia in a big scale, KLRC may have to replicate most of the functions and resources that existed in BAM. It may also have to compete with BAM in other areas such as sponsorship, etc and instead of complementing BAM, it may become an unwanted adversary. As I see it right now, most of KLRC's support goes to the "has been" players and we have seen that most of these players are not really complementing BAM in that they are unable to represent the country effectively, i.e. win titles. ZZ is a special case because of his recent success as the Asian Junior Champion. So KLRC is trying very hard to retain him instead of feeding to BAM. We all know that ZZ may be in the limelight now, but will he be able to make good at the senior level. In fact, most of us feel that ZZ will find Victor Axelsen of Denmark hard beat at this year's World Junior Championships. Will he be able to do better that LCW who already won the silver medal at Beijing Olympics 2008? Will KLRC be able to provide him all he needs to become an Olympic Champion, just as what BAM has provided LCW at the last Olympics and continues to provide all the support required for next year's London Olympics? This is the kind of competition that KLRC has to face to compete with BAM. BAM will be around for a long, long time for it has the support of the government and it was established under "the Sports Development Act 1997 of the Laws of Malaysia"! So KLRC must do much more than just being "a family of Badminton players/enthusiastic fans" as you put it.
The school scene is quite different. In Singapore, the overall government institution handling all educational matters is the Ministry of Education, commonly known as MOE. MOE dictates what the school syllabus should be, what exams schools are allowed to sit for, whether private schools are of acceptable standard to be allowed to do business, etc. If private schools do not perform up to standard, they can be closed, and recently many private colleges have been closed. Inspections of schools are made on a regular basis by MOE and even a grading and ranking of the respective government schools is done annually I think. Private schools can "compete" with government schools by scoring better results at important examinations like the Cambridge "O" level. But most of the time the top schools come from government schools with better funding, better trained teachers and well-equipped facilities. Private tuition is out of the official system if they are not commercially established, like home tuition. There are laws governing contractual obligations between the tutor and his students as there are laws governing the establishment of commercial enterprises, which I suppose the private schools also fall under apart from MOE requirements.
With the Li Ning deal and perhaps more to come, now KLRC will have to contend with KLBA, other than BAM, over ZZ! Now I wonder whether the cream of the KLBA talent pool will ultimately go to BAM? Very hot politics, ya!
Sponsorship for KL badminton junior squad The Malay Mail Faizal Nor Izham Monday, July 18th, 2011 12:28:00 KUALA LUMPUR: The Kuala Lumpur Badminton Association (KLBA) has signed a sponsorship agreement with sports goods distributor Sunlight Sports Pte Ltd which will supply Li Ning badminton accessories and equipment to KLBA junior squad members aged 12 to 18. KLBA was represented by its president Datuk Mohamad Norza Haji Zakaria and the Sunlight Group by its director Mahender Kapoor of Sunlight Sports Singapore at the signing ceremony on Saturday at the Olympic Sports Hotel in Jalan Hang Jebat. Also present was Datuk Dr Mohamed Al-Amin Abdul Majid who's deputy president of the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) and vice-president of the Badminton Asia Confederation (BAC). "We hope to develop a long-term relationship with both the Sunlight Group and Li-Ning to help our youths move up to the next level," said Norza. The sponsorship comes in the wake of the team's success at the June 2011 Malaysian National Junior Interstate Championship in Penang and the 2011 Asian Junior Badminton Championship in Lucknow, India in July. The signing ceremony was followed by a presentation on the brand and group photo session with the VIPs and the 60 junior KLBA representatives who were present. Li Ning Company Limited, which made its name selling footwear and sporting apparel in China, is named after the well-known Chinese national artistic gymnast and entrepreneur Li Ning, who founded the company in 1990. He was also the first Chinese inductee into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2000
