Rosdie takes charge of pair

NATIONAL Sports Institute's (NSI) Rosdie Ghani, as from today, will replace Behrad Honer as the physical trainer for struggling pair Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong.

   Rosdie, who has been guiding Lee Chong Wei for the last six years, has been given the added responsibility of assisting Kien Keat-Boon Heong as a lack of fitness and power have been identified as key reasons for their struggles.

   Honer, formerly with the national hockey squad, had been in charge of the pair's physical conditioning for almost two years but their fitness remained an issue.    Rosdie will focus on Kien Keat-Boon Heong's programme while Sean Sturgess will conduct physical training sessions for the rest of the men's doubles players.

   National Sports Institute (NSI) director general Datuk Dr Ramlan Abdul Aziz said the move was not surprising as Kien Keat-Boon Heong have been struggling with their fitness and the problem was so glaring  in the Malaysia Open that a change was inevitable.

  "It is not something new as I wanted to make a change after the World Championships last year but decided to allow Honer to continue after a request from the coach (Pang Cheh Chang) but the performance of Kien Keat-Boon Heong in the Malaysia Open was bad enough to make a change necessary," said Dr Ramlan.

   "There will be a question  whether Rosdie will have the time but Chong Wei is world class and well aware of what he needs to do. I'm sure Rosdie will arrange the sessions accordingly so that Chong Wei and Kien Keat-Boon Heong both receive equal attention.

   "We are not saying that they will regain their form of old but they can come close to satisfying levels and  surprise their rivals as the Olympics draws closer."

   The high performance committee, consisting BAM secretary Ng Chin Chai, Datuk James Selvaraj and National Sports Institute's (NSI) Kol (Rtd) Wong Ah Jit, had decided to allow Tan Kim Her, Pang Cheh Chang and Yoo Yong Sung to coordinate the training programme for Kien Keat-Boon Heong and also gave the nod for Rosdie to handle their physical training.

    National men's doubles head coach Kim Her said efforts to improve the physical condition of Kien Keat-Boon Heong alone was not enough as the pair  have to approach the changes in the training programme positively.

   "Kien Keat-Boon Heong will undergo three sessions a week with Rosdie. I have already given the tournament schedule and his sessions will begin tomorrow (today)," said Kim Her.

      "I don't want them to just go through the motions without understanding why they are put under certain drills. They should also have a better understanding of the training programme, so I will have a discussion with them."

Read more: NST