KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 28 — Two badminton championships in Bangkok, Thailand in January 2021 will serve as training grounds for professional mixed doubles player Goh Liu Ying to regain her form, after missing international championship for almost nine months due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The former national player admitted that she would need to focus on re-establishing her partnership with former national player Chan Peng Soon, after having last played together at the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham, last March.

The two championships in Bangkok, namely the Thailand Yonex Open, from January 12 to January 17, and the Thailand Toyota Open from January 19 to January 24, offer a combined total prize money of US$1 million (RM4.05 million).

“There is some concern of course, because Covid-19 has spread to Thailand and it does affect my focus and emotions, but my target is to regain the ‘tournament feeling’ after not competing in any international championship for so long.

Advertisement

“What worries me the most is my mental state that has been distracted as I have not competed due to Covid-19, and I do have commitments to my sponsors, who hope I qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics,” the 2016 Rio Olympics silver medalist said when contacted by Bernama today.

Liu Ying also announced that she and Peng Soon would leave for Bangkok on January 4 after getting permission from the National Security Council and the Malaysian Immigration Department.

The 31-year-old shuttler also expressed her thanks to the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) for helping speed up the approval process for the pair to fly to Bangkok.

Advertisement

Liu Ying also revealed that the Badminton Association of Thailand and the Badminton World Federation (BWF) would implement stringent standard operating procedures at the two championships to curb the spread of Covid-19.

“As I understand it, we (players) will be placed in the same hotel and are not allowed out throughout the two championships, except to the championship courts,” she explained.

the top-eight players from five categories of the 2020 BWF World Tour Rankings will qualify for the BWF World Tour Finals scheduled to take place in Bangkok from January 27 to January 31. — Bernama