It is a move that is long overdue. However, as the saying goes – better late than never.
Kuala Lumpur Badminton Association (KLBA) will work closely with schools in the city via its newly launched Jejak Juara project.
And the icing on the cake – the initiative is not dependent on government funds.
The five-year project, which starts this year, aims to turn KLBA into a factory, churning out talents for the city and Malaysia.
“We have players with potential, but our goal is to develop quality shuttlers from Kuala Lumpur,” said KLBA president Datuk Seri Jahaberdeen Mohammed Yunoos.
“Every player will have data to analyse their games to improve their technical capabilities.
“The programme will concentrate on collecting funds via sponsorship from companies eager to be part of the (KLBA) family. We will not rely on government funds,” added Jahaberdeen, a senior lawyer and BA of Malaysia deputy president, after launching Jejak Juara at Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka yesterday.
Present to officiate the event was Education Minister Datuk Seri Radzi Jidin.
In March, Twentytwo13 reported that KLBA would form a partnership with all 292 schools in the city to unearth more talents.
The project targets players as young as 10. Four schools have been identified as district training centres – SMK Kepong Baru (for Sentul district), SMK Sri Pantai (Bangsar), SMK Seri Bintang Selatan (Pudu) and SMK Wangsa Melawati (Keramat).
KLBA hopes that talents from the project will dominate the National Schools Sports Council Games.
Last month, KLBA tied up with Banthongyord Badminton School in Bangkok, Thailand, to serve as a platform to expose young talents to an international environment.
It is also part of KLBA’s President’s Scholarship programme – an incentive to recognise Kuala Lumpur’s cream of the crop.
