Current State of Singapore Badminton

Discussion in 'Professional Players' started by Loh, Jan 9, 2009.

  1. pjswift

    pjswift Regular Member

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    Totally agree.
    A player is only as good as his teammates.It's silly of SBA to believe a FT would trade off his citizenship for a non-guaranteed future.An INA citizenship is more valuable because a SIN citizenship is easier to apply for.A FT would be best seen in a dual role.To challenge local talent to their potential and to represent Spore in Open tournaments so that they have the opportunity to earn extra income beyond the subsistence level that SBA provides.How can SBA believe their FTs have no opportunity costs and will be beholden to them?
    Would Susilo be in a better position now financially if he had stayed back in INA? That's hard to gauge although he did imply in a previous interview he wasn't sure he made the right decision on hindsight.Kendrick certainly benefited from Susilo's company.It's a pity that Kendrick was sent to tournaments way too late so by the time he started showing his results, he was ready to retire.Kendrick has an excellent match temperament. He always believe he has a chance to win regardless of his opponent.
    SBA's behaviour is just an expression of a very tight budget.But sports excellence can never be achieved in this way.Maybe if SBA pluck up some nerve and ask the Spore President to kindly help by donating just 1% of his pay, things may brighten up.....
     
  2. george@chongwei

    george@chongwei Regular Member

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    she's still young.
    bright future for her though:)
     
  3. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    I just wonder whether there is such a thing as a "guaranteed future"? :D

    Is Singapore's citizenship really so cheap? :(

    And I'd rather that one should not attempt to speak on behalf of another person or to be too personal with his/or her views on others. :rolleyes:
     
  4. Sealman

    Sealman Regular Member

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    I heard on the grapevine that the talent scouts who brokered these 'Foreign Talents' deals get good payouts from both the players and the association. Such is life.....
     
  5. baddeh-crew1

    baddeh-crew1 Regular Member

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    I actually cannot Singapore let one of their best junior players Gu Juan out of the team .
    All because of the coach . Focusing mainly on Xing Aiying and Li Li before .

    Her future was going to be SUCCESS , obviously the coach did not realise that .
     
  6. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    Maybe a middle ground approach would be better. Do not force citizenship on them. Instead let FTs retain their current citizenship and give them permanent residency status. They have the best of two worlds. How can you beat that? There are many foreigners in Singapore who enjoy this twin status. So why not extend to FTs in sports?
     
  7. Oldhand

    Oldhand Moderator

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    Nothing less than citizenship qualifies a player to represent a country at, say, the SEA Games or the Asian Games. This (and the fact that the Asian Youth Games and the Youth Olympics are just months away) should explain the Singapore Badminton Association's attempt to force urgent citizenship on Riky Widianto.

    The turn of events has been strange, to say the least.

    Last Friday (exactly a week ago), Riky had joined my group for an evening session. Undoubtedly, he is (as Eng Hian said) a brilliant and promising doubles player... very agile, very fast, very powerful and quick-thinking.

    This was his fourth year with the Singapore squad... and he had signed the renewed contract sometime last year for less than USD 900 a month.

    Consider, for a moment, what this amount means in real living terms.

    His boarding and lodging account for over USD 500 every month.
    That leaves him less than USD 400 for everything else - that's just 12 or 13 dollars a day in expensive Singapore - and, remember, this is a teenager with as many wants as any other.

    Even handymen are paid much more than this - and they certainly aren't being groomed to represent Singapore. As a matter of fact, even the lowest grade employee at the Sports School is paid more than this high-calibre player!

    If those who run badminton in Singapore can't bring themselves to wear the imported player's shoes for a moment and see the view from his perspective, it means they are sorely lacking the skills to further this sport in Singapore.

    It's rather bizarre that those who could wait seven years for Ronald Susilo to make up his mind could not bring themselves to either better the lot of this highly talented young man or give him more time to consider staying on for, what is at best, a pittance.

    In my view, this episode doesn't further Singapore's badminton chances in any way.
     
  8. OneToughBirdie

    OneToughBirdie Regular Member

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    Reasonable suggestion that apply to foreigners working in Spore. Giving up citizenship is a big decision and irreversible. But I can see Spore has dilemma, FT have to be citizens to represent Spore in majors e.g. commonwealth, SEA, Asian, WC, etc and not some Opens, therefore why invests limited public funded resources in FT when FT cannot represent Spore and bring glory to Spore with a gold or whatever color biscuits.
     
  9. OneToughBirdie

    OneToughBirdie Regular Member

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    I opine that is not likely. In INA, Riky would be lost among the thousands of 17-yr old INA teenagers chasing a dream to be the 'next one' to TH. And INA ain't gonna pamper Riky as though he is the only one. With so many players and so limited resources, PBSI may not be able to send Riky to as many Opens as Spore may be able to. To win an OLY gold for Spore, payout is S$1 million (correct me if I am wrong), now, if Spore can sport a potential star, I do not believe that Spore would not invest accordingly...what better bragging right than to beat MAS in baddy in majors - that would really be some news. On another note, if by chance Spore WS paddy player will to beat CHN in WC or even OLY, I can only imagine how big the echo will sound;)
     
  10. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    My thinking is nearly as similar, except for the MAS bit. ;)

    I'd say Riky has missed a rare chance to really shine for himself and for Singapore. If Eng Hian thinks he is good and if he remains the doubles coach, Riky can only improve. I also think Singapore will try to groom him to be a champion and that's why Riky has been pressured to turn Singaporean, partly that he could be further exposed in official regional and international games requiring citizenship representation.

    In four years when the London Summer Olympics arrives Riky will be able to challenge for a medal and that means a lot. How many 17-year old Indonesian players could get that chance as you've said. But Riky may be the exception. Good luck to him.

    Talking about FTs beating their ex-countrymen in a major competition, it has happened to Singapore when our dimunitive China FT swimmer Tao Li, now 18 and studying in the Singapore Sports School, shocked China's champion when TL beat her in 50m butterfly in the 15th Asian Games 2006, Doha.

    We are expecting TL to shine in the London Olympics, as she was the first Singaporean swimmer to feature in the Beijing Olympics 100m Butterfly finals, where she came in 5th. :D

    A profile on Tao Li could be found here:
    http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1428_2009-01-22.html
     
    #30 Loh, Feb 19, 2009
    Last edited: Feb 19, 2009
  11. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    Don't spoil Riky. :rolleyes:

    To me, with the major expenses for food and lodging taken care of, the remaining US400 (S$600 and IDR4.8million) as pocket money for a teenager is not that bad, even in Singapore.

    How many average Singapore school-going teenagers can receive such a sum? Depending on his life style, which I assume must be moderate as a teenager receiving full time badminton training without other financial responsibilities. Sure he is talented, but success cannot be guaranteed. ;)

    How many talented athletes have fallen by the wayside? Some of the teenagers brought from China not too long ago have now disappeared.

    Remember, he is not a full-fledged high ranking professional yet, he is being groomed to be one. His salary must increase commensurate with his contribution to the national badminton effort. So he has to continue to show commitment and improvement before success can accrue.

    Does he get this kind of pocket money from his parents back home? Remember too the cost of coaching and other fees have to be paid, plus more money for overseas trips, etc.

    So some sacrifices must be made by all, including the FT, before a star can be created. :D
     
  12. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    Remember the old Malayan badminton squad used to be dominated by players from Sinagpore and Penang. What has happened? The great Wong Peng Soon, Ong Poh Lim and even Ooi Choong Teik were from Singapore. Perhaps the old passion for badminton is not there any more.
     
  13. cheemao

    cheemao Regular Member

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    $1350 is a bit low by Singapore’s standards but this issue can't be looked at only in monetary terms. I agree with Loh is the sum is not a small sum for a 17 year old teenager but one might argue that Singapore is giving him a paltry sum and taking back half that amount for his lodging and meals. I see the $1350 as an allowance rather than a salary; an allowance which is not too miserly as a foreign trainee until he becomes a Singapore and definitely not if we factor in the opportunity costs of grooming him. Ricky is technically a ‘foreign worker’ in Singapore and this amount is a reflection of his age and experience but once he decided to convert his citizenship it is a different story. After converting and if he performs well, his bargaining power will increase astronomically.

    Since it was stated that he turned down SBA because he will need another 1-2years to decide, it is fair to assume that money is not the issue here. But if money was a factor, it is not the best of times to ask for more given the current economic climate and his unwillingness to convert his citizenship. Should he take up SBA’s offer, his living is almost well taken care of with him playing for the national team til he retires to further his studies or become a coach and ex-players can earn decent money as coaches here. The fact that he turned his back on this projected path might shows that there are other underlying reasons for his decision – inability to adapt to way of life, home sickness etc so we never know

    All FTs recruited by Singapore should be aware that they are brought in with the eventual motive of converting their citizenship and donning the Singapore colours. The fact that Ricky has been in Singapore for 3 years and still undecided over the matter goes to show that his thoughts and goals are out of alignment with SBA’s; thus SBA had no choice but to go hard on him. There is no way SBA will cave in to his demands only for him to decide that Singapore citizenship is not for him further down the road. It is also not possible for me to compare him directly to Susilo who was given 7 years to make up his mind while Ricky has to decide after 3 years because the circumstances might have been different.

    His going is definitely going to be loss for SBA and I can only give Ricky my best wishes and hope that he will have no regrets on the issue.
     
  14. cheemao

    cheemao Regular Member

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    It is not that the passion is not there anymore. If you go around badminton halls in Singapore, you can see crowds everywhere and it is hard to book courts in Singapore for peak hours. So why can’t we produce world beaters?

    Back then, standard of living is low and most led a carefree life. Kids, regardless of whether they had school, can play badminton all day long without a care in the world. Ever since the government made education one of the nation’s top priorities, everything else took a back seat in the name of nation progression. As time goes by, the standard of living improves greatly and one’s salary commensurates with paper qualifications for the majority of the nation and bread becomes an important issue on the dinner table. Kids can no longer play any sports all day without being restricted by their parents. The workload of an average student is so high that it is almost impossible to train full time in a sports since young. The number who takes up this challenge is few and far between and among them, many still drop out half way through the process.

    So even if kids and parents have the passion for the sport, the environment restricts them from going all out. The flame passion is still there burning faintly in a dark corner of everyone’s heart waiting to be ignited but the overwhelming environmental conditions keeps putting out whatever little flame there is left thus, explaining why most of us can only play the game as a past time
     
  15. OneToughBirdie

    OneToughBirdie Regular Member

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  16. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    You're 'one tough birdie' alright! :eek::cool::D
     
  17. Oldhand

    Oldhand Moderator

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    Um, how about OnceToughBirdie? :D
     
  18. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    Now, my friend from Calgary, are you going to take that lying down? :D

    Bring out your sabre, sorry maybe racket to be fair to Oldhand. :p
     
  19. OneToughBirdie

    OneToughBirdie Regular Member

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    What can I say when the Oldhand guy is right that I am getting into old fart territory:crying:...With the economy tanking and engineering too stressful, and seeing that playing baddy can make millionaire and driving RM600K bimmer(forget about the Datoship, too heavy responsibility), I am scanning the net hunting for some senior citizen leaque paying big bucks to play in...then again, I would still lose:crying:
     
  20. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    Forget about the stress and the money part! ;)

    Come to Singapore and participate in Oldhand's "Changing Partners Match-making Night". They are starring tonight at Ang Mo Kio (is this what they say in Hokkien: Red Skin Bridge?). :D

    And you may even win a multi-million engineering job (in SingDollars) with one of the big contractors who seem not to be perturbed with what's going on outside of Singapore. The bigger ones involved in the Marina Bay Sand Integrated Resorts project had a different headache. They are rushing for time to complete before year-end, a deadline which has been imposed for the grand opening. :):):)
     

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