KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 – Is something brewing in the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) of late when coach Datuk Tey Seu Bok was left out of the traveling party for the Yonex Swiss Open which begins in Basel on Tuesday?
Seu Bok is the odd man out from the trip and it is surprising that the rest of the team- players and coaches – had no problems after getting clearance from the National Security Council (MKN).
It is reliably learned that Seu Bok was ready for the trip and was apparently only informed at the eleventh hour that he is not traveling.
None of the head coaches traveled for the European-leg of tournaments as they are all Indonesians and had problems getting visas due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
If what we have heard from certain quarters in the BAM there is a “lot of politics” in the national badminton body and this has affected the game.
Some with clout are calling the shots and cannot ”see eye to eye” with some in the coaching setup.
Head coaches Hendrawan, Indra Wijaya, Flandy Limpele, and Paulus Firman are all from Indonesia and were left out of the Europe trip due to government restrictions.
The assistant coaches who left with the players on Saturday midnight were Loh Wei Sheng (women’s singles), Hoon Thien How (men’s doubles), and Teo Kok Siang (mixed doubles).
BAM’s director of coaching Wong Choong Hann, who also left with the team will also take charge of Lee Zii Jia in the men’s singles.
For the record, Choong Hann had to cancel his trip to the recent Asian-leg in Bangkok on the eve of the trip when he was tested positive for Covid-19.
Zii Jia was a big flop in Bangkok when he failed to be on the podium in the Yonex Thailand Open, the Toyota Thailand Open, and the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals.
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