KUALA LUMPUR – Despite not signing up for the Road to Gold (RTG) programme, the committee has decided not to sideline the needs and requirements of independent men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia.
The 25-year-old was the only athlete who refused to sign the letter of commitment (LoC) to the RTG programme when it was offered to him by the committee last year.
The agreement is a prerequisite in exchange for the benefits and services provided to athletes under the elite programme in the nation’s pursuit of gold at the Olympic Games in Paris (2024) and Los Angeles (2028).
World number 10 Zii Jia had received sports science services twice under the programme, despite not signing the LoC.
Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh said the RTG committee is committed to helping any athletes who require any sort of financial help to improve their performance.
The RTG committee has so far spent a total of RM3.53 million on the RTG programme, with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) receiving the highest allocation, which was RM1.18 million, while RM1.06 million was spent on professional shuttlers.
“Even though Zii Jia didn’t sign the LoC with RTG, that doesn’t mean that we will not help him ahead of the Paris Olympics. We treat everyone equally, and we will help all our athletes with whatever they need.
“The experts from the National Sports Institute (NSI) will also be present in Paris to help our athletes, and we don’t have any issues with Zii Jia using their services if he wants to, which we will provide for our athletes.
“When we newly started the RTG programme, we even had several independent badminton players who were not in the programme asking us for financial support, and we have supported them as well,” Hannah said.
The RTG programme was launched in March last year to provide “top-up services” for high-performance athletes who are viewed as having the potential to end Malaysia’s quest for the elusive Olympic gold medal.
In the meantime, Hannah added that the RTG committee is hoping to work with government-linked companies (GLCs), Malaysian brands, and private sectors to support the RTG programme with the aim of rewarding athletes who perform well in the Olympics.
“Some may think, how come only RM3.53 million was spent, but the bulk of it is covered by the Podium Programme. These are just the top-up services that we have given to the athletes.
“We have managed to gain corporate support that will provide cars for our athletes if they happen to do well in the Olympics. But we also welcome corporates, GLCs, and Malaysian brands who are willing to reward the athletes.
“The athletes need to be rewarded if they do well in the Olympics, but they also need to remember that for now, they should focus on qualifying first instead of thinking about their rewards,” Hannah said.
Aside from badminton, RM465,239.66 was spent on national cyclists, RM458,177.45 for diving athletes, and RM20,025.44 for weightlifting athletes, while hockey received a total of RM342,903.62.
The RTG committee dropped the national men’s hockey team last year after they failed to reach their self-imposed gold medal target at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. – February 29, 2024