PETALING JAYA: Former international James Chua will step down as head coach of the Czech national team after spending two years in Europe.
James’ final assignment with the Czech team was at the European Championships in Huelva, Spain last week.
During the tournament, their top men’s doubles pair Jiri Kral-Ondrej Kral came close to delivering a perfect farewell but fell in the quarter-finals to French brothers Christo and Toma Junior Popov.
James is grateful for the opportunity.
“I thank the Czech Badminton Association for the opportunity to lead the national team. I am sorry that I have to leave due to family matters,” said James.
“I wish Czech badminton continued success and that it becomes even stronger. Maybe we will meet again sometime in the future.”
James, a former national men’s singles player, began his stint with the Czech team in September 2024 and played a key role in raising the standard of the squad.
Besides guiding the Kral brothers, he also helped restore the confidence of women’s singles player Tereza Svabikova, who had been sidelined by a long-term injury.
He also worked with men’s singles player Jan Louda, who now serves as an assistant coach after being forced into early retirement due to injury.
James also guided the Czech women’s team to qualify for the European Team Championships in Turkiye in February and was named Coach of the Year at this year’s Czech Senior Championships.
The CBAS had earlier expressed interest in retaining James and even offered him a contract extension until August 2028, after the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. The terms of the contract had also been significantly improved.
However, James turned down the lucrative offer and instead requested an early termination of his contract on April 30.
“On behalf of myself and the Czech badminton federation, I would like to thank coach James Chua for the work he has done for Czech badminton, as the results of our players speak for themselves.
“I would like to wish him good luck in his future coaching career,” said CBAS chairman Petr Martinec in a statement.
