Olympic Hopes?

It's the eve of the Beijing Olympics, everybody is watching that city with anticipation, some even holding their breaths.



They've promised a spectacular visual feast and all the countries have promised to outperform each other in the competition.

Malaysia is sending a relatively small team hoping for one medal of any colour from whatever event they might garner it from.

China is aiming to prove their dominance.

America is going to defend their Champion title.



Who are YOU rooting for?

Finality

He who is Frustrated.

Rexy Mainaky. The guy responsible for bringing Malaysian Mens Doubles up to a respectable level...actually...not only respectable, but pretty much elite.

And then it was like a switch was flipped and everything started going downhill. If put into a graph, it might be a ninety degree angle!

In Doha, he told his under-performing charges, that was it, he had enough of watching them lose again and again and again and again and again everything and that he was quitting.

BAM "talked" to him. KKBH played for their careers lives and won Gold. Rexy let out a long breath and allowed himself to be dissuaded from leaving.


Then...KKBH and the rest lost again. And again. And again. And again. AND again AGAIN. Therefore, now we have This!

A semi-definite resignation from a heartbroken, frustrated Rexy. Again.

Then told that he should not step down as he had done exceptionally well to raise the standard of the Malaysian doubles since taking up the job in 2004, Rexy said between sobs: “I have given my very best in coaching the Malaysian team ... I have done everything I could. Day in and day out I have worked hard with these players ... but I feel like I have failed them.

“I just do not know what else to do. Now, I just do not feel like coaching.”

Shows that he can do what KKBH can do too= Berepetitive in things that throws BAM into a state of flurry. Add in the recent problems with BJSS, the "truth" behind Li Mao's departure and the various politics within BAM itself...

What has Badminton come to? And now that Rexy is (Possibly) leaving, what will Malaysian Badminton become?

[Chong Wei is the only survivor in the finals of the Malaysian Open. Oh PLEASE may he win tomorrow against Hyun Il. Please please please please please. WMC's match today was heartbreaking. She had this nice chance in the first set and totally fell apart in the second.]

Sam is hoping.

3rd UGS Badminton Gathering

We've lost count of the gatherings that UGS members have held. Oh dear. I have to admit. We've really come a long way from the First gathering that was held. Eight people attended the first gathering. After that, the average number of members attending gatherings have risen steadily to 13.

The first gathering took so much persuasion. The latest gathering took a few msn msgs, a few smses and a few calls (Okay, so maybe ONE person in particular took more persuasion than the rest lol). UGS has really become a very tight knit community and I'm very very happy and proud of that =D Big cheers to admins Ced, Kenny and Wen Qi. And the ever supportive members! All. Of. Them. Not forgetting those who AREN'T members...but came anyway!



Okay. So on Wednesday, the third Badminton Gathering was held at Stapok again following the success of the first two. Here and here (Ced had Green/Yellow hair in this one haha!). A total of...13 people showed up. And all thirteen of them played!

It was scheduled to start at 12 until 2. I woke up at 11.30 because Nic called my house. Was in a flurry to get ready and ended up in my mums car instead of Nics as originally planned. Reached Stapok one minute before 12 and saw Vivian and Jasper whom my mum thought were together (rotfl) =D

I went down to greet them and got a chance to flip through the Lodge Magazine. The Azam winner was from LODGE! *Jaw drops* And there was a lot of posing in the magazine haha. Andrew Ho arrived soon after followed by Lai and then Nic, Lina and Zareth. After them was Josh, Ced, Tay, Benjamin and Josh Lim.



The gathering begun a little after twelve and once again we were in Court B. Contrary to Joshua's belief, I did NOT ask Jasper and Lai to play with him and Andrew to mensiasoikan him. ;)

The presence of two SBA players didn't affect anything, badminton was played, new friendships were forged, new people attended their first Gathering, Laughter was...laughed, Strings were broken. Badminton Gatherings are definitely getting livelier even without the presence of Taboo!



The gathering ended at around 2.30 which shows that 2 hours is not enough for us. Will have to extend gathering hours next time. One thing still remains the same though. No matter how many gatherings we have (And I think it's safe to say we've passed the 20 mark)....One thing STILL remains the same.

The troubles that arise when it comes to take group photos. Shout. Dash. Run.


Sigh.

Sam enjoys Badminton.

Battle of the... Titans?

In a battle for supremacy between two titans, one already famed for its predatory power and the other a relatively unknown but not-to-be-underestimated force, the showdown was nothing short of spectacular.

Introducing the Great White Shark, one of the most powerful predators on Earth - fast, powerful and precise - many have met their ends in the hands (or jaws) of the Great White.


On the other side lies the relatively-unknown and elusive deep sea titan - the Giant Squid. Though lacking the force and the precision of the Great White, it is compensated by several elastic tentacles which seem to reach anywhere they want to, giving it an edge when it comes to speed and flexibility.


The battle started with the Great White on a highly offensive bout, knocking off the Giant Squid and chomping huge bites off it before it managed to gain a footing... I mean tentacling. Whatever. The Great White's power was delivered forcefully and swiftly, the Giant Squid not at all prepared to handle the blitz. It was not until that the Giant Squid suffered serious damage before being able to regain control of the battle, extending its tentacles in anticipation of further attacks by the Great White. Unfortunately, it was a bit too late and the Giant Squid has already lost the first half of the battle.

In a turn of events, the Giant Squid went on an offensive. No longer on a passive defence, it stretched every single tentacle it had and gave the Great White a beating. Whip after whip, the Great White was simply overwhelmed by the speed and numbers of tentacles it had to face. Its attempts to counter-attack were brushed off just like that, with the Giant Squid seemingly able to read the Great White's moves so quickly and accurately and that it made the Great White look like a Tuna in a fisherman's net - a desperate struggle.

But it wasn't long before the Giant Squid started to lose its advantage, and the Great White managed to regain its composure and went on the offensive again. The Giant Squid fought with all it had, extending all its appendages to the limit, fearless for its own safety. However, it simply lacked the power and precision for the killing blow - while the Great White is making its way through the many layers of defence of the Giant Squid in a calculated and refined power, proving itself worthy of carrying the title as one of the most deadly predators on Earth.

In a final struggle between two very worn down titans which were on the verge of collapsing, the Great White gathered all its remaining strength and pushed forward. Try as it may, the Giant Squid simply was not able to stop the Great White as it was approaching like a bullet train - fast, powerful and unstoppable. The Great White dealt the killing blow, and it was the end. The Giant Squid put up a valiant fight, but Great White was simply the better fighter. Survival of the fittest, quite simply.



And that, was the final results of the SCG Thailand Open 2007 Badminton Championships. Really. I'm not kidding. Really.

Singles in Kuching

Our national Mens Singles are coming to Kuching next month! To prepare for the World Championships!

No...Not Single men. MEN'S SINGLES! Allow me to clarify if it isn't already crystal for you.
BADMINTON PLAYERS!!!!



WHEEEEE~~ Lee Chong Wei, Mohd Hafiz Hashim, Lee Tsuen Seng, and Roslin Hashim (wild card) are the players who will be coming here. Lee Tsuen Seng has been improving a lot lately meanwhile...I can't for my life accept the fact that Roslin got the wild card instead of Choong Hann. Choong Hann has performed considerably better in tournaments lately and before! Roslin seems to only have gotten it because he made a lot of noise about being left out two Competitions.

Sigh?

The Doubles team however will be going to Malacca. (Insert disappointed smiley). These are all the men, where are the women!? Anyway! THEY ARE COMING.

Let me say Yay again.

YAY!

I was high over badminton again.

He's Back!

I seem to be only blogging about badminton lately...Must not be so single track minded. (Is that an actual word?)

Anyway!!! It's 3.32p.m, my semester exams start tomorrow, I'm not prepared but WAIT!

His signature preparation position

LEE CHONG WEI WON THE INDONESIAN OPEN!!! *insert huge applause, a few faintings, shortness of breath emphysema, spontaneous combustion* I got home just in time for the second set *Have to watch the first set later. Love Astro Max*

It was...Incredible. Let's bear in mind, Chong Wei lost to Hafiz in the FIRST round of the Singapore Open last month. He crashed out in all super series events without making a Single Final ever since the Super Series was introduced!

China's resident Pretty boy. He's the prettiest in the whole badminton squad.

AND that Bao was the one whom surprisingly beat Chong Wei in the World Championships Quarterfinals in Madrid last year which led to Chong Wei's BIG PMS episode. (Lack of confidence, sluggish performances and losing his number 1 spot in badminton rankings)

He wore this too today.

So, the second set was...absolutely dominated by Chong Wei. Bao hit many shuttles out of the left top side of the court and Chong Wei delivered deadly cross-court smashes to the right side of the court about 3-4 times too! From the first second to the end, Bao was unsure of how to play. It's like they switched personalities.

Lcw Dive's, Smashes, Net's, Tap's, Backhand's, Cross-court's, Lift's, Rallies...WINS!

I loved the match. So, Lee Chong Wei, the second Malaysian to win the Indonesian Open, his First Super Series title, IS BACK!!! (Yeah!)

Let's hope he stays this way

Can't wait for Mens Doubles.

Malaysia Hampir Boleh

Zhang Ning wore this. That's why she won

The Aviva Singapore Open 2007 just ended with a big showdown. Zhang Ning (in purple) beat Xie Xing Fang in the Womens singles and Zhang Ya Wen partnered Wei Yi Li to win the Womens doubles. In Mix Doubles, Marissa and Limpele of Indonesia beat the surprise Thai pair in straight sets.

Mens Singles was a BIG affair. On one side was Chen Yu who waded through a sea of Malaysians and Gade to get there while Boonsak Ponsana beat Hafiz, Lin Dan (insert big gasp) and Ronald Susilo to get to the finals. I never knew he was that Good looking!!!!!

Boonsak Ponsana

From the start of the match until the end, I was AWED by Boonsak. Why isn't he in the top ten?! Why hasn't he won anything major other than some Smiling Fish satellite in 2003 (Which sounds totally gay)?! He's AMAZING. It was during the match that I understood how was he the runner up to ABC (Asian Badminton Championships) last year. Boonsak won anyway. He beat Chen Yu. Chen Yu gave up towards the last few points and Boonsak is very VERY cute

TFWW. Veterans.

The thriller of the day. Mens Doubles. Chong Tan Fook and Lee Wan Wah against Fu Hai Feng and Cai Yun. I was looking forward to this since yesterday some idiot guy who was in charge of broadcasting messed up the timing and the semi-finals got cut off the list.

It started off great. TFWW were crushing the chinese. The second set start off great too! Then they started slipping. After a TIGHT Deuce, it was brought to the third match. TFWW ROCKED the third match with seven points in between them and Cai/Fu even thought they started off four points behind.

Cai and Fu somehow managed a MIRACLE and climbed 8 points up win the third match.

How do I describe a match like that?

I sent a total of 168 text messages during the entire Finals. I screamed, I shouted, I banged, I teared when the last shuttle was sent backwards.

Why do Malaysians have this habit of "Malaysia Hampir Boleh" in sports? Except for Nicol David, nobody seems to be consistent. We have Chong Wei whom I cannot even begin to describe, Esther Cheah who wins sometimes, loses sometimes...

He fell

It's hard I guess, to be a consistent sportsman. Even Lin Dan fell! To Boonsak!

She's tall

Hopefully the Indonesian Open which begins next week will yield better results. The draw is...terrible. Wong Mew Choo is against Xie Xing Fang in the first round.

I was here frustrated with such a frustrating Final.

Badminton

Badminton, the fastest racket sport in the world. My favourite sport and currently, one of the uprising sports that has become rather popular.

What do you know about badminton? Here's a few off the top of my head.

• China's Men Doubles pairing Fu Hai Feng and Cai Yun hold the record for fastest smash.
• It requires the use of a racket.
• Badminton shoes are expensive =(
• There are purple grips, purple strings, purple rackets but so far, I haven't found any purple badminton shoes.
• Our country's number one singles used to be number on in the world. When Lin Dan was feeling generous
• We have the most dynamic doubles pair currently. Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heon. (KKBH/ KKK+TBH) They rock at smashing.
  
• KKBH's best formation is with KKK in front and TBH at the back.
• Badminton lingo is very easy to pick up.
• It's incredibly difficult to photograph badminton players in action.
• China players all have FedEx on them. (I wonder if they ever get FedUp)
• A lot of top players from Europe are Chinese. Pi Hong Yan for instance. and Xu Huai Wen.
• Good badminton players have VERY knobbly knees.
• S-serve or Sidek serve was banned. It was invented by the Sidek brothers and was totally nonreturnable that it was banned. How cool is that?!
  
• I will never stop if I don't stop now.

We've had a successful UGS badminton gathering in the past. Obviously that points out a few things.

Badminton can be played by ANYBODY. It doesn't matter if you're pro at it or a complete novice. As long as you hold the racket by the right end, have semi-efficient hand-eye coordination, You can play badminton! Thus, it's enjoyable and everybody can come together and play badminton.

Badminton is a SOCIABLE game. You CAN talk and play at the same time. Trust me. You can =D

Badminton is a HUMOUROUS game. More than a dozen times, you can find yourself hitting towards the shuttle as hard as you can only to miss it altogether. It's frustrating for the player. But incredibly funny for everybody else.

The Badminton court is multi purpose. You can take group photo's there. You can make phone calls. (Stupid point, disregard it). You can play other games such as Taboo.

Badminton always leaves you Aching wanting for more.

I was here. Obsessed over Loving badminton.

Doha Asia Games 2006

It's the last day of Doha and Malaysia is standing in the 10th position. With three more matches to be played out ( Basket ball Bronze and Gold Medal match and Football Gold medal Match), there's a possibility Malaysia would finish 11th.

How has Malaysia fared during the period of this two weeks?

Pretty well since we broke the old medal record with....two more golds if I'm not wrong. Or was it one? So, Gold.

Gold Medalists and their sports.

~Koo Kien Keat (otherwise known as triple K or KKK) and TBH (relatively unknown until now) -Badminton-
To the surprise os a lot of people, this pair beat the world number ones from China and Indonesia's top doubls who beat them in the World Championships, Kido and Setiawan. It's kinda amazing that they won actually.

~Heng Boon Hiang, Aaron Kong, Daniel Lim -Bowling-
They couldn't let the girls team have ALL the limelight could they?



~Esther Cheah, Zandra, Wendy, Shalin, Choy Poh Lai, Sharon Koh -Bowling-
Esther got her own personal Gold Medal through the Womens Singles before joining the others to get another for the Five Player Teams. 3 Gold from Bowling alone. Almost half of the gold medals!

~Rufina Tan -Sailing-
She got a gold in Sailing when I didn't even know Malaysia had particpated in the sailing competition!!! Surprise Gold Medal indeed.


~Ong Beng Hee - orange Squashed-
I really thought Iskandar was gonna win, bit no, He won instead. The people at the top have to fall sometime I guess. Either that or he mastered the art of squashing


~Nicol David -Squasher
Eehh~ Shoo in for the gold finally got shooed in for the gold! I mean...I was so scared she'd crash and burn. As Malaysians are known for. Crashing and Burning at the last second. But nope, she whacked beat Rebecca pretty convincingly. Woots! Go Nicol!


~Chai Fong Yin -Wushu-
Historical Gold medal. Go her! I watched her routine. Wah wah~! Very deservingly I think. For a person who's never watched wushu before, I think it was pretty great!

The rest is a bit too long to list out. We got 17 silvers and 17 Bronze medals. A bit meager compared to China's 164 Gold, 88 Silver and 63 Bronze. Heck, our gold, silver AND bronze combined can't even reach their amount of Bronze.

Oh well! At least we're improving no?

The closing ceremony will be soon, and the millions of dollars invested in the Doha Asian Games ends there no? Of course Doha would probably host some more Games like this, but all that money was used for This Asian Games.

So tell me, do you think it was impressionable enough? Exciting enough? Over soon enough? the top?

Maybe it will end with a Blast.


Now, those Malaysian Athletes who won any medals can look forward to coming home and getting their "incentives" from NSC.

That and of course the more competitions to come.