Lessons For Malaysian Sports

It is the same old story again - early promise, dismal ending. This time, it was the national soccer team at the Asian Cup qualifiers. After showing promise in the first leg games (with a win and 2 draws) at home, they collapse in the next leg with 3 losses playing away (in Bahrain). With that Malaysia missed the chance to play in the final rounds of the tournament.

And this is not peculiar to soccer. The national badminton, squash, bowling and hockey teams have similarly failed us in the recent past. They raised our hopes in the run up to the finals only to disappoint us at the crucial moment.

Much has been said and written about Malaysian Sports failure to achieve greater heights. I see no point in repeating them here (the reasons, the excuses, the blame game and so on).

But I always believe, when things do not work following our ways, we can always learn from the example of the best - teams, players, et al’. A humbling action but rewarding none the less. I wrote about this in a letter to the sports desk of a local daily in 2000 (which as usual never saw print) immediately after the conclusion of European soccer competition the (Euro 2000).

I still believe that what I wrote then applies today. And, if it interest you, I would like to share it here.

Euro 2000 – Lessons for Malaysian Sports

And so it has passed, the European Championship for year 2000. Congratulations to France for achieving the “double”, European and World Champions. Thanks to all the competing teams for 3 weeks of thrills and spills, heroes and villains, elation and frustration, fluid flowing attack and stout, determined defense and whatever else you could look to from the legendary Pele’s “beautiful” game, football.

But through all this, none was as glaring and basic as the two qualities that make for this high level and entertaining football fest or more generally sports spectacle – professionalism and national pride. Herein lies the key to the uplifting of the dismal state of Malaysian sports.

The players showed us with their performance that being a professional is not just about earning a living from your chosen sport. It is about giving your best in the discharge of your professional duties as a sportsman, much like a surgeon when in the operating room. It is also about positive attitudes and commitment to training, the coaches and the desire to continuously bring oneself up another level in skills and fitness. The pictures of the teams in training showing the serious look on the faces of the players and the same seriousness they bring to the field on match days are ample evidence of this professionalism. And prima donnas they were not (a surprise when you consider that the best of the best in Europe were playing) judging from the post match interviews which showed responsibility in defeat and humility in victory.

Professionalism was also exhibited by the respective country’s FAs. One can hardly recall any official (the coach/manager aside) commenting on team selection and tactics despite the occasional errors in both aspects. They had considered and made their choice of who should lead their teams and were professional not to interfere.

And to reinforce all these, the coaches/managers exhibit single-mindedness focus on nothing but the team and the game during the course of the tournament. Never was there any mention of rewards or their future as such coach/manger. Their ultimate professional act was to know that having been given carte blanche over selection and tactics they have to accept responsibility for whatever happens on the field. So it was no surprise that those who failed were quick to resign not just offer to resign.

National pride? Who can forget the expression on the faces of the players when, hands holding or hands over each other shoulders, they partake of the pre-match national anthem ritual. Or their total collapse, literally, when losing a hard fought match – flat on their backs or heads between bended knees and shedding tears. What does all these show if not the pride and bruised pride of having been chosen to represent the country and of having failed the country, respectively.

In this “nationalism” (of the sporting kind, that is) lies the secret to the mental strength and indomitable spirit shown by the players, when the chips were down, to come back and secure victory in the face of “death”. The last minute goal victories are testimony to this.

So in the end, and you are talking of people who can earn as much as 45,000 pounds sterling a week playing club football, the honor of being able to put on the national jersey is still a much sought after goal, all other benefits of being a professional footballer notwithstanding. There are parallels to this in other sports too, the keenness of the millionaire NBA professionals in wanting to play for the USA in the Barcelona Olympics in 1992 as part of the “Dream Team”, is an example.

Malaysian sportsmen/sportswomen and sports officials could do well to reflect on the above-mentioned basic traits, so essential to achieve sporting success on a personal and collective level. Otherwise we sports fans would not only have lost sleep (as has happened in the last couple of weeks) but also any interest remaining in the oft quoted phrase Malaysia (Sports) Boleh .