Do not pamper and mollycoddle our elite athletes

AT the pinnacle of his career, Datuk Lee Chong Wei rarely gave television interviews at the studio, live or recorded.

By chance, I was handed this privilege in Astro Arena’s sports talk show called Kafe Sukan, co-hosted by this writer and Akbar Sahari many moons ago.

In the show which was held in conjunction with the launch of his book Dare to be A Champion in January 2012, Chong Wei was asked about his training regimen.

“I run a longer distance than my younger colleagues. I run up to 3,200m in the morning. When it comes to strength training, I lift the heaviest weight I can. None of my younger colleagues could match me.”

That was the reality then. Chong Wei’s desire for success pushed him to train harder, run faster and further than mere pretenders to this throne.

His game evolved tactically and strategically too.

When he burst into the scene with an appearance in the Athens Olympics in 2004, Chong Wei preferred an all-out attack game before perfecting an ironclad defensive style to counter the likes of Lin Dan.

His rally style was then shifted back towards attack, with some success, bulking up his upper body considerably to achieve stronger raw power.

Chong Wei became adept at translating his speed into some relentless hard-hitting and steep smashes, practically reaping the rewards on his investment by winning the silver medal in the Olympics on three occasions.

And when asked of his appointment as the team manager bound for the Paris Olympics next year, Chong Wei has said he would not hesitate to crack the whip.

“Nowadays everything must be discussed with the players. But we cannot be pampering them. We need to be firm,’ he said.

Chong Wei is expected to push the idea for the Olympic aspirants be housed under one roof so that their movement, diet, rest and recovery time are constantly monitored.

The sad reality is that sometimes, elite athletes, despite reaching a certain plateau, are guilty of asking for privileges that are not available for the rest of us mere mortals.

They are treated like a member of the royalty, by conveniently ignoring the fact an athlete is a king or queen only for as long as they can perform to their optimal level.

Athletes like these need to be brought back down to earth.

No compromise. No babysitting. No settling for the status quo. And no protection from Ministers or politicians, even if they go against the sentiment of the netizens.

Instead of mollycoddling them, we need to endeavour instilling a degree of self-reliance into them.

Don’t be blackmailed into pandering to a pampered group of prima donnas, for transient and fading success.

Members of the public cannot condone if an athlete harbours mediocrity as the height of their ambitions.

To compete and survive at the highest level can only come through being tempered, and burnt, in the furnace of experience.

The media too is not in the business of protecting sporting personalities from the pressure cooker atmosphere.

Especially when there have been instances when national athletes chose to be on a warpath with the media.

And with the backing of Ministers and the fickle-minded netizens, these athletes will gain the bravado and temerity to behave as they feel.

But are they willing to emulate the likes of Chong Wei in their respective disciplines, invest in themselves by working on perfecting their art and work harder than others?

Can they survive the cauldron of the highest level of international sports?

How do we sharpen their killer instincts to pounce upon opportunities if we continue to protect them?

Ultimately, a mouse cannot suddenly turn into a lion in the battlefield.