KUALA LUMPUR: The national shuttlers who featured in the Thomas Cup Finals in May were rewarded by the Government, And this time, the coaches were not left out.
All 10 shuttlers, who helped Malaysia finish runners-up in New Delhi for the first time since 2002, were rewarded with RM8,000 each. The National Sports Council (NSC) also handed out RM16,000 to be shared among the five coaches and an additional RM8,000 to the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM).
Last month, the BAM gave the shuttlers RM25,000 each. The coaches, however, were not given any monetary rewards.
The shuttlers were Lee Chong Wei, Chong Wei Feng, Liew Daren, Goh Soon Huat, Tan Boon Heong, Tan Wee Kiong, Hoon Thien How, Goh V Shem, Chan Peng Soon and Lim Khim Wah. The coaches were Rashid Sidek, Tay Seu Bock, Pang Cheh Chang, Wong Tat Meng and Hendrawan.
Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who announced the rewards on Tuesday, said the shuttlers made the nation proud by surpassing their target.
Malaysia took Japan to the distance before going down 2-3 in the final after an outstanding 3-0 win over Indonesia 3-0 in the semi-finals.
“I, like all Malaysians, wanted the team to win badly, but there was no shame in the defeat to Japan.
“I did not regret going there to watch them play on that day as we went down fighting.
“The credit should also go to the coaches who came up with a plan to beat the higher-ranked teams to reach the final,” said Khairy, who urged the shuttlers to move on from the heartbreaking Thomas Cup defeat.
“Do not give up aiming for more successes. We still have the Glasgow Commonwealth Games (July 23-Aug 4) and the Incheon Asian Games (Sept 19-Oct 4). We want to see them do well in these two Games,” he added.
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