KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia are set to enjoy a win-win badminton partnership with South Korea when both teams sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) at the Juara Stadium in Bukit Kiara on Wednesday.
The collaboration between the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) and Korean Badminton Association (KBA) will see Malaysian juniors enjoying a one-week training stint and matchplays with the Koreans.
The Korean players will arrive on Wednesday and plans are in the pipeline for Malaysian juniors to spend a week in South Korea on a similar project.
BAM’s Support Service Group (SSG) general manager Kenny Goh said there would be other mutual benefits under the partnership.
“This exchange programme aims to further improve the understanding and cooperation between both associations in the spirit of badminton,” said Kenny.
“Our coaches will be involved in discussions with them. There will be an exchange of ideas and knowledge in sports science. We are also planning for a future league tournament involving both countries,” he added.
South Korea are now one of giants China’s main challengers in world badminton.
The Koreans have long relied heavily on sports science to be successful. For the record, South Korea have won several gold medals in the Olympics, World Championships and Asian Games.
They have also tasted success in both the Thomas and Uber Cups.
Currently, the Koreans have more players in the top 10 in the world compared to Malaysia.
Malaysia’s top 10 players are Lee Chong Wei (No. 1) and Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong (No. 5). South Korea, however, boast three – Ko Sung-hyun-Lee Yong-dae (No. 1), Kim Ki-jung-Kim Sa-rang (No. 7) and Shin Baek-cheol-Yoo Yeon-seong (No. 8) – in the men’s doubles; three – Jung Hyun-eun-Kim Ha-na (No. 5), Eom Hye-won-Jang Ye-na (No. 6) and Lee So-hee-Shin Seung-chan (No. 10) – in the women’s doubles; and one – Shin Baek-cheol-Jang Ye-na (No. 10) – in the mixed doubles.
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