PETALING JAYA: Rexy Mainaky, while receiving the bouquets for turning Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik into world champions, wants the badminton fraternity to remember the unsung hero of the success story – assistant men’s doubles coach Tan Bin Shen (pic).
While the Indonesian basked in glory as Aaron-Wooi Yik ended the nation’s 45-year-wait for a world title in Tokyo on Sunday, Rexy highlighted Bin Shen’s contribution in helping the pair in training.
It’s rare for assistant coaches to travel with the team for major events but Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) doubles coaching director Rexy wanted Bin Shen to witness the special occasion himself and return richer in experience.
“Everyone would say I was behind Aaron-Wooi Yik’s success but don’t forget the hard work Bin Shen had put in helping the top pair. For me, he is the first Malaysian coach to produce a world champion,” said Rexy.
“Bin Shen deserves this because he is someone who is very sincere and focused on his job. He has been with the doubles longer than I and his inputs are important as we come up with training programmes.
“He is a dedicated coach and I wanted him to experience the atmosphere at the World Championships and it will help him to grow as a coach in the future.”
Japan coach Tan Kim Her was the only Malaysian who has produced a world champion pair when his charges Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi won their country’s first men’s doubles title in Huelva, Spai,n last year.
However, Rexy wants Bin Shen to share the credit.
The reserved Bin Shen, who used to train under Rexy during his previous tenure as the national doubles coach (2005-2012), was humble and said he has a lot to learn from the legendary Indonesian.
“I owe a lot to Rexy for believing in me. He wanted me to continue encouraging and helping Aaron-Wooi Yik come out of their struggles.
“I’ve always encouraged them, motivated them and also helped them in match analyses (video analyses),” said Bin Shen.
“Aaron-Wooi Yik have been going through a rollercoaster ride for almost two years but they have been working very hard. I’m happy to see them make a breakthrough in this world championships.
“Rexy and I have already been discussing how to guide Aaron-Wooi Yik in handling their career after this win.”
One of the BAM’s key performance indicators (KPI) for foreign coaches is to transfer the knowledge to their local counterparts who can take over once their tenure is over.
Former singles coach Li Mao may have achieved that to a certain degree as Wong Tat Meng, who learnt his trade under the Chinese trainer, has been doing well abroad.
James Chua, who trained under Li Mao during his playing days, speaks highly of the coach and has been utilising his mentor’s training methods in his role as the national women’s singles coach.
Rexy’s role in allowing Bin Shen to come to the fore as a coach would also see one of BAM’s objectives achieved and Malaysia would start having quality coaches themselves to guide the national shuttlers in the future.
