Lau speaking at Friday’s welcoming dinner for participants in the CMS Samarahan Leg just concluded over the weekend.
KUCHING: Parents and coaches have been urged not to pressure their children to win squash competitions, especially those at grassroots level.
In making this call, Squash Racquet Association of Sarawak (SRAS) president Robert Lau Hui Yew said they should instead let the children enjoy their game instead of placing too much priority on winning.
“We have a lot of players at grass roots level aged between eight and 11 and they should be given the chance to love and enjoy playing squash,” he said at the welcoming dinner for the CMS Sarawak Squash Circuit Samarahan Leg at a local restaurant last Friday.
“Children, if you don’t win in squash competitions and your parents and coaches said that you are ‘no good’, tell them that they are wrong and that I say so,” he said uequivocally.
Lau said one of the main objectives in organising the CMS Sarawak Squash Circuit was to get the younger players from all over the state together to enjoy playing squash and making new friends.
The welcoming dinner was also to get the players and the parents to come together and mingle.
“Winning or losing is not important, the most important thing is that you must enjoy the game. Once you enjoy playing squash, you will become successful,” he stressed.
As the deputy president of SRAM and head of the national squash development programme, Lau said he noticed there was a lot of pressure to perform on the young players.
And many had given up squash because they were under pressure to perform and win competitions and the players nowadays had become “too competitive”.
Squash Association of Samarahan (SAS) president Zambari Baijuri, who also spoke at the dinner, commended the organising committee for working very hard to ensure the success of the event which they are organising for the first time.
“I would also like to thank SRAS for supporting us and our thanks also go to sponsors like LEA Sports Centre, Sarawak State Sports Council, and the parents for their strong support in this event,” he said.