Tread with caution, Zii Jia – today’s decisions are tomorrow’s realities

IN the life cycle of sports, the rule of thumb for an athlete is that he or she will enjoy the ups which do not last very long, even for the eternal optimist.

At any given point in their short careers, there is usually a down season even for the very best, close on the heels of the ups.

Sports scientists have found that athletes’ peak performance follows the physiological law.

In general, most athletes, especially those in individual sports, reach their prime somewhere between the age of 20 and 30 before entering the period of irreversible decline.

In badminton, if you take a cursory glance at the list of winners of the men’s singles category at the Olympic Games and the World Championships, the most common age for the men’s singles gold medallist is 24 years old. The average and median ages are 25 years old and 25 and a half respectively.

These statistics suggest male shuttlers at the highest level enjoy their greatest chance for success, measurable by the number of major titles under their belts, in their mid 20s.

Of course, there are exceptions to the rule.

Our own Datuk Lee Chong Wei was able to continue winning tournaments beyond the age of 30.

Chong Wei won the All-England in his mid 34 in 2017, which is extraordinary considering the physical demands of the game. Unfortunately, the most coveted titles – the Olympic Games gold and the world title – are missing from his cupboard of silverware.

In witnessing the emergence and the ensuing domination of a select few male shuttlers in the past three decades, I realise the biggest names in the game gained worldwide acclaim by winning either the Olympics gold or the world title before they turned 25.

Former Indonesian ace, Hariyanto Arbi, reached his peak as the world champion at the age of 23, winning the world title in Lausanne in 1995. A year before he won the Asian Games gold medal in Hiroshima, beating compatriot Joko Suprianto.

His trademark jumping smash, however, must have taken its toll on his career which lasted for seven years.

When I covered the Asian Championships (ABC) at Stadium Negara in 1997, 16-year-old Taufik Hidayat showed maturity beyond his tender years as he upstaged newly-crowned national Grand Prix champion Yong Hock Kin in the third round.

An Asian Junior champion at that age, Taufik won the Olympic gold by the time he reached 23 in Athens.

The following year Taufik, who played a similar style to Hariyanto, was crowned the world champion in Anaheim, becoming the first ever men’s singles shuttler to be holding the two titles in consecutive years.

Lin Dan, Chong Wei’s perennial nemesis, was acclaimed as the world champion in 2006 at the age of 23.

Viktor Axelsen became world champion at the age of 23 before repeating that feat five years later.

Against this backdrop, let us hope that Malaysia’s No. 1 Lee Zii Jia, who will turn 25 next month, has not seen his best days yet.

The Kedah-born Zii Jia has had a disappointing start to 2023 when he crashed out in the early rounds of the Malaysian Open, Indian Open and Indonesian Masters.

Having to fill Chong Wei’s big shoes, Zii Jia was on track with his first major title at the All-England in 2021, a week shy of his 23rd birthday.

After a disappointing outing at the Tokyo Olympics and the World Championship in Spain where he was forced to withdraw in the third round, Zii Jia bounced back with the Asian Championship title at the age of 24 years 30 days in Manila in 2022.

Zii Jia is seemingly at the crossroads of his career. So much so Chong Wei has offered a helping hand.

Now burdened by a potential legal wrangle with former coach Indra Wijaya, Zii Jia, who has decided to continue without a coach, has to tread with caution.

Today’s decisions are tomorrow’s realities. So goes the saying.