YOUTH and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh hopes that newly-appointed Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz will review the national governing body’s ecosystem to ensure the welfare of all national shuttlers is safeguarded.
Hannah also advised shuttlers to remain under the BAM umbrella instead of turning professional so that they can continue receiving full government support through the association.
“There are many factors to be considered when a shuttler contemplates staying with BAM or turning pro. The advantage of staying with BAM is that they will have ready sparring partners, which is something that will be lacking should they turn pro and which can also affect their performance.
“That is why I’m asking BAM president Tengku Zafrul to review this ecosystem and ensure the players receive the best possible support. If possible, for the shuttlers to remain with BAM so that the government’s assistance will reach them and there will be an orderly system… various types of government support are channelled through BAM,” she said.
She said this at the launch of a video to raise awareness about the Drug-Free Youth campaign in collaboration with a cinema chain and national athletes, which was also attended by National Anti-Drugs Agency (AADK) director-general Datuk Ruslin Jusoh here today.
Meanwhile, Hannah said she was satisfied with the performance of the national shuttlers at the 2024 Malaysia Masters, which ended yesterday.
“I believe that with the presence of coaches and the support from the RTG (Road to Gold) programme, we can continue to raise their performance level. We have allocated a budget for the National Sports Council (NSC) talent development programme this year to ensure a constant supply of new talents,” she said.
Earlier, at the event, Hannah announced a strategic collaboration between the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS), through the Rakan Muda Development Division, the National Youth and Sports Department (JBSN) and TGV Cinemas to further empower the Drug-Free Youth campaign.
Hannah said the strategic collaboration involves the screening of videos raising awareness of the dangers of drugs and banned substances before the screening of movies at all TGV Cinemas nationwide.
“Today, we launched the awareness video in partnership with TGV. TGV has cinemas at 40 locations nationwide, except in Sabah, and TGV cinemas have also assisted the government in a promotional video campaign to fight baby dumping.
“The campaign was very effective because it encouraged those affected to seek government assistance. So, this time we are collaborating with the AADK to bring this series of promotional videos to the cinemas because many who go for movies are youths,” she said.
