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The Sun
12 hours ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Pearly-Thinaah cruise into Japan open final after dominant win over hosts
MALAYSIA'S top women's doubles pair, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah, advanced to the final of the 2025 Japan Open Badminton Championships in commanding style after defeating Japan's Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida in the semi-finals today. Playing at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, the world number three duo delivered a composed and aggressive performance, taking the first game 21-13 before sealing the match 21-11 in just 35 minutes. With this win, Pearly and Thinaah broke their losing streak against the Japanese pair, who had previously beaten them in 13 out of 15 encounters. Their last win over Matsuyama-Shida came at the 2022 French Open, with the Japanese pair dominating all subsequent meetings, including at this year's Sudirman Cup. Pearly and Thinaah will next face either Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning or Jia Yi Fan-Zhang Shu Xian of China in the final. Meanwhile, Malaysia's mixed doubles pair, Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei, fell short of reaching the final after losing to defending champions Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin of China. The world number four pair were outplayed 12-21, 16-21 in straight games during their semi-final clash- BERNAMA
The Sun
13 hours ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Pearly-Thinaah Reach 2025 Japan Open Badminton Final
MALAYSIA'S top women's doubles pair, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah, advanced to the final of the 2025 Japan Open Badminton Championships in commanding style after defeating Japan's Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida in the semi-finals today. Playing at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, the world number three duo delivered a composed and aggressive performance, taking the first game 21-13 before sealing the match 21-11 in just 35 minutes. With this win, Pearly and Thinaah broke their losing streak against the Japanese pair, who had previously beaten them in 13 out of 15 encounters. Their last win over Matsuyama-Shida came at the 2022 French Open, with the Japanese pair dominating all subsequent meetings, including at this year's Sudirman Cup. Pearly and Thinaah will next face either Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning or Jia Yi Fan-Zhang Shu Xian of China in the final. Meanwhile, Malaysia's mixed doubles pair, Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei, fell short of reaching the final after losing to defending champions Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin of China. The world number four pair were outplayed 12-21, 16-21 in straight games during their semi-final clash- BERNAMA
Daily Express
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Express
Maijol retains Sabah Badminton Association presidency
Published on: Saturday, July 12, 2025 Published on: Sat, Jul 12, 2025 By: GL Oh Text Size: Maijol (seated, third left) with the new SBA committee. Kota Kinabalu: Datuk Maijol Mahap retained his post as Sabah Badminton Association (SBA) president for the 2025-2029 term at its 70th annual general meeting (AGM) held at a hotel here, recently. He received overwhelming support from the delegates with 33 votes while his challenger Keplie Limun only managed five votes. He said he was very honoured to receive the mandate given by all the delegates present. 'I am truly appreciative of the trust placed in me to continue to lead SBA. I would like to thank all the delegates from the 19 districts for coming and completing our agenda. 'I would like to express my commitment to strengthen the development of badminton at the grassroots level as well as enhance the achievements of Sabah badminton players at the national and international levels,' he said. He added that election is an important process in ensuring that the SBA leadership continues to be accepted and functions legally according to the association's constitution. 'Thank you again for the trust and confidence given to me to lead the SBA for the next four years. We will do our best for the sport of badminton in Sabah,' added Maijol. The other elected members in the new committee are deputy president Suriansa A. Kadir, vice presidents John Baru, Sudirman Abas, Sanif Alfia and Ag Damit while the supreme council members are Roger Langgau, Dr Joinis Longkiad, Khoo Chui Eng, Abd Husin Sairi, Sumitah Hassan and Jimin Tibin. In the appointed positions, Anthony Liaw was named vice president, Rechine Jikah as honorary secretary assisted by Samsuddin Abu Bakar Gait, while the honorary treasurer is Felix Francis Ganang with Steve Koh as the assistant. The appointed supreme council members are Ag. Ku Mohd Yazri, Ag. Ku Mohd Yahaya, Androw Celyron Sindeh, Lily Lidond and Dr Ovelyn Matanluk. For the record, Maijol only returned to lead the State body in May last year after a lapse of 11 years. He was the president from 2006 to 2013 and during that period, SBA with him as the executive chairman organised the historic World Super Series Master Final at Kota Kinabalu Sports Complex in 2008, and several State players were also drafted into the national squad at that time. SBA under him was awarded the best state sports association in 2008, and he was presented the best sports leader award for three consecutive years from 2008 to 2010 as well. He was also appointed national team manager by Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) at the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, the Asian Games in Guangzhou, the Sudirman Cup in Guangzhou, the Junior World Cup in Auckland and the Master Super Series in South Korea, Denmark, Macau and Japan. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
The Star
24-06-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Jun Hao sees new challenge as morale booster despite higher pressure
Maturing well: Leong Jun Hao feels more confident after learning new things under coach Kenneth Jonassen PETALING JAYA: Becoming the national No. 1 could be just the right tonic for men's singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao as he seeks to step up in the second half of the year. Jun Hao, who has been inconsistent so far this year, is determined to raise his game after overtaking Lee Zii Jia in the world rankings. The former moved up one spot to No. 25 in the latest rankings while the latter dropped two rungs to No. 28 last week after hardly competing this year due to an ankle injury. While Jun Hao acknowledged that expectations will be higher on him, he is motivated by his new status. 'Definitely there is pressure but for me, becoming national No. 1 also boosts my spirits and I'm taking this as a new challenge,' said Jun Hao after a training session at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara yesterday. 'Earlier this year, my performances have not been good enough as I needed time to adapt and learn new things under coach Kenneth (Jonassen). 'Now, I believe I am getting better at knowing which strategies I need to use in matches.' Dane Jonassen joined the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) in January as singles coaching director and has been working hard to turn Jun Hao's fortunes around. Jun Hao's best performance this year came in the Singapore Open last month where he stunned Indonesia's world No. 4 Jonatan Christie en route to the quarter-finals. The 25-year-old also showed glimpses of his ability when he pulled off sensational wins over China's world No. 5 Li Shifeng and Japan's world No. 7 Kodai Naraoka in the Indian Open in January and Sudirman Cup in April. Jun Hao though has not managed to maintain his form and wants to change this in the second half of the year, starting with the back-to-back Japan Open from July 15-20 and China Open from July 22-27. The 2017 Asian Junior champion has been making full use of more than a month of full training and believes the break from tournaments has been beneficial for him as he seeks to improve himself. 'There are big tournaments coming up and I have been focusing more on adding variety to my game during training,' said Jun Hao. 'Usually, players hardly get much time to rest (due to the hectic tournament schedule), so I'm taking full advantage of having more than a month to prepare for the next competitions.' Meanwhile, Zii Jia will be making his return from injury in the Japan Open after last competing in the All-England in March. The draw for the competition will be released on July 8.
The Star
24-06-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Hao sees new challenge as morale booster despite higher pressure
National men's singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao in action against Ireland's Nhat Nguyen in the first round of Malaysian Masters at Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil on Wednesday. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star PETALING JAYA: Becoming the national No. 1 could be just the right tonic for men's singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao as he seeks to step up in the second half of the year. Jun Hao, who has been inconsistent so far this year, is determined to raise his game after overtaking Lee Zii Jia in the world rankings. The former moved up one spot to No. 25 in the latest rankings while the latter dropped two rungs to No. 28 last week after hardly competing this year due to an ankle injury. While Jun Hao acknowledged that expectations will be higher on him, he is motivated by his new status. "Definitely there is pressure but for me, becoming national No. 1 also boosts my spirits and I'm taking this as a new challenge," said Jun Hao after a training session at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara yesterday. "Earlier this year, my performances have not been good enough as I needed time to adapt and learn new things under coach Kenneth (Jonassen). "Now, I believe I am getting better at knowing which strategies I need to use in matches." Dane Jonassen joined the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) in January as singles coaching director and has been working hard to turn Jun Hao's fortunes around. Jun Hao's best performance this year came in the Singapore Open last month where he stunned Indonesia's world No. 4 Jonatan Christie en route to the quarter-finals. The 25-year-old also showed glimpses of his ability when he pulled off sensational wins over China's world No. 5 Li Shifeng and Japan's world No. 7 Kodai Naraoka in the Indian Open in January and Sudirman Cup in April. Jun Hao though has not managed to maintain his form and wants to change this in the second half of the year, starting with the back-to-back Japan Open from July 15-20 and China Open from July 22-27. The 2017 Asian Junior champion has been making full use of more than a month of full training and believes the break from tournaments has been beneficial for him as he seeks to improve himself. "There are big tournaments coming up and I have been focusing more on adding variety to my game during training," said Jun Hao. "Usually, players hardly get much time to rest (due to the hectic tournament schedule), so I'm taking full advantage of having more than a month to prepare for the next competitions." Meanwhile, Zii Jia will be making his return from injury in the Japan Open after last competing in the All-England in March. The draw for the competition will be released on July 8.
