KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 27 — Malaysian badminton great Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei has warned players against using the threat of leaving the national set-up as leverage, insisting that no individual should be placed above the team.
The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) performance committee chairman was responding after Soh Wooi Yik said he and long-time partner Aaron Chia were prepared to consider their options as they push to remain together through to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
According to The Star, Lee said BAM remained willing to listen to its players, but cautioned against using the prospect of walking away simply because decisions made by the association did not go their way.
“You have to remember where the player came from and where he trained when he was younger.
“He came through BAM and BAM helped develop him into the player he is today, so when he achieves something now, you also have to remember who helped him get there,” Lee said.
“You cannot just use the World Championships result to put pressure on the association.
“I don’t know how things were handled before, but the current management is not afraid to make difficult decisions. I can tell you that.
“Don’t talk about leaving BAM simply to put pressure on the association. The new management is not afraid of that.
“We are prepared to discuss anything, but at the same time, we cannot keep pampering the players.
“If there is something they want, they should sit down and discuss it with us. Whatever we can do to help, we will help.’’
Chia and Soh have made clear that they want to continue their partnership through to Los Angeles 2028, and their argument for staying together received another boost last week when they took silver at the World Championships in New Delhi.
The result reinforced their standing as Malaysia’s strongest established men’s doubles pairing, but BAM’s coaching team is continuing to experiment with different combinations as it plans for the next Olympic cycle.
Chia has already been paired with Aaron Tai, with the duo finishing runners-up at the Taiwan Open.
Soh, meanwhile, was tested alongside Man Wei Chong and, after a difficult start, reached the Korean Masters final with his new partner.
The reshuffling is set to continue at the China Masters from September 1, where Chia will partner Man while Soh teams up with Tai.
That leaves the future of the Chia-Soh partnership under scrutiny despite both players making clear that they believe they can remain competitive together all the way to Los Angeles.
Leaving BAM, however, would come with complications.
The Star reported that Chia and Soh are both tied to the national body until 2028, meaning a move to become independent players could expose them to a substantial compensation claim.
They could also face restrictions on entering international tournaments, which in turn could make the race for the ranking points needed to qualify for the Los Angeles Olympics considerably more difficult.
