KUALA LUMPUR – Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria will reconsider his decision to quit the top post by the end of the month, after receiving a request from Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh earlier today.
Speaking to Scoop, Norza said that he will decide during the council meeting this Saturday.
“There will be a council meeting this Saturday. I will consider it until after Paris 2024, as I respect the minister and we work well together,” he told Scoop via WhatsApp.
However, it is understood that Norza’s tenure as president only ends in 2025, and many in the badminton fraternity have expressed their wish for him to stay on at least until after the Paris Olympics next year.
Earlier, In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Hannah requested for Norza to reconsider his decision to step down as BAM president.
Hannah explained that the Road to Gold programme was set up to survive abrupt changes in the ministry and Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM).
Norza and Hannah are co-chairs of the high performance programme.
Norza, who is also OCM president, initially planned to relinquish his position in BAM after the Paris Olympics in August 2024.
However, Norza decided to expedite his departure after finding a suitable candidate to take his place.
In September, Scoop broke the news that Investment, Trade, and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz was set to take over at BAM, which was later confirmed by Norza in October.
Norza has helmed BAM since 2017. – December 12, 2023