King proud of young shuttlers' achievements

KUALA LUMPUR: The Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah is proud of the achievements of the country's young shuttlers in winning several international tournaments.

Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president Tan Sri Norza Zakaria said Al-Sultan Abdullah also advised the youngsters to continue performing with excellence at the highest level.

"Tuanku advised them to continue to train hard to maintain the country's badminton excellence, apart from keeping their focus, especially in facing important upcoming tournaments," he told reporters at Istana Negara today.

Earlier, His Majesty and the Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Hajah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah attended a tea party at Istana Negara with the national badminton team that competed at the 2021 All England championships.

At the tea party, Their Majesties were presented with the racquet that national shuttler Lee Zii Jia used en route to winning the 2021 All England men's singles final last month.

The national team's young shuttlers also won the men's singles, mixed doubles and men's doubles titles in the 2021 Polish Open in Gniezno at the end of last month.

Ng Tze Yong, 20 won the men's singles title; 20-year-olds Choong Hon Jian-Toh Ee Wei captured the mixed doubles crown; and Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun, aged 21 and 20 respectively, emerged men's doubles champions.

Meanwhile, Zii Jia, who is set to lead Malaysia's challenge in the Tokyo Olympics in July, was thrilled to bits to meet with and get advice from Their Majesties.

He said Al-Sultan Abdullah had personally given him some words of encouragement and advice in his quest for future success.

"I was surprised the King said he watched the final and I was also nervous... only now I know His Majesty is a badminton fan. Hopefully, I will be able to produce more positive results in the future.

"His Majesty also asked me to maintain a high fighting spirit and continue to improve my performance, apart from getting lots of rest," he said.

The tea party was also attended by Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican and several national shuttlers, including Swiss Open women's doubles winners Pearly Tan, 21, and M. Thinaah, 23, who both also competed in the All England but crashed out in the quarter-finals.

-- BERNAMA