Japan’s World No 24 Sho Sasaki took on Brunei’s Rio 2016 Olympian Jaspar Yu Woon Chai in the men’s singles practice. Picture: BT/Khaliq Roziman
National badminton players Siti Marinah (L) and Siti Nurhayati (R) in action against Japanese national players during the Brunei-Japan badminton exchange programme at the Indoor Stadium of the Hassanal Bolkiah National Sports Complex in Berakas last night. Picture: BT/Khaliq Roziman
Japan’s World No 24 Sho Sasaki took on Brunei’s Rio 2016 Olympian Jaspar Yu Woon Chai in the men’s singles practice. Picture: BT/Khaliq Roziman
BADMINTON fans and enthusiasts in the sultanate were treated to exciting practice games at the Brunei-Japan badminton exchange programme co-organised by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and Embassy of Japan last night.
The singles match between World No 24 Sho Sasaki of Japan and Brunei’s Rio 2016 Olympian Jaspar Yu Woon Chai was the main highlight of the event held at the Indoor Stadium of the Hassanal Bolkiah National Sports Complex in Berakas.
Japanese duo Miki Kashihara and Miyuki Kato went up against Siti Marinah Salleh and Siti Norhayati Mohammad Jefri in women’s doubles while in the men’s doubles, Yu Igarashi and Kenya Mitsuhashi faced Brunei’s Masrur Fuad Hj Asmat and Mohd Shahirul Mohd Jenin.
In an interview with The Brunei Times, Mohammad Zuno Kartono Ali, Brunei’s Badminton World Federation (BWF) and Badminton Asian Confederation (BAC)-certified Shuttle Time trainer, said that the badminton community in the country benefited a lot from the exchange programme.
“This is a great opportunity for us and is very beneficial for the badminton community in the country as a whole. We can only watch these world class players competing on the television, but tonight we all have the chance to witness them live in person,” said Mohammad Zuno.
“As a coach, I will also be able to learn from matches like this... I believe that these kind of programmes can help develop our local players to get used to competing against world class players at international level tournaments.
“These practice games can definitely be used as a platform to gauge our level... Even though they are not competitive games, it will help our players to see where they stand among the best. “Meanwhile for the others, they can use these practice games to prepare for competitions at the regional and international level.
“It is good for Jaspar to have competitive practice games in Brunei because we can see how he plays and assess his game at the same time “They (the Japanese) are just on a different level. They are not just highly skillful and disciplined, they are also highly experienced. They are also very fit and strong — physically and mentally — so we need to learn from them.
“If there are any further programmes or collaborations between Brunei and Japan that include practice games in the future, I am all for it! “It will be good for Brunei to send our players to train together with world class players too, not just for a short stint but for longer periods of time,” continued Mohammad Zuno, who was Yu’s coach at the Rio Olympics.
Held to commemorate His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam’s 70th birthday celebration, the four-day exchange programme covers other activities such as visits to selected schools and coaching sessions.
The practice games continue tonight at the Indoor Stadium at 8pm and the public is welcome to attend. Entrance is free.
