Coffee Talk! Chit-Chat and All That #3

Dear future lawmakers,

The weekly "Coffee Talk! Chit-Chat and All That" is a section of the blog designed by the Committee for aspiring young people like you to have discussions on current public policy issues from all sectors of society. The aim is to ignite your thought process and sharpen your critical thinking skills, both of which are invaluable traits of a policymaker. Participants are encouraged to comment on the post and perhaps even engage in constructive debate with others. We hope this section will benefit you well in preparation for MPPC 2012!

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Renewed interest in badminton, thanks to Lee Chong Wei

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/8/9/nation/11822514&sec=nation

Recently, one of the most popular topics to talk about is the badminton match between Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei. In some of the discussions, it is not uncommon to hear rants regarding the need for improvement in our country’s sports policies. Our focus in this week’s article is an interest which has recently been sparked: none other than our country’s sports policies.

Despite LCW’s loss to China’s Lin Dan, Lee Chong Wei is a victor in more ways than none when it comes to inspiration. As mentioned in the article above, many Malaysians have recently initiated themselves to take up certain sports—namely badminton— after Lee Chong Wei’s match against Lin Dan in the London Olympics. But how long will this recent motivation last?

If you read this article here “http://www.acpe.askit.my/Fullpaper/ONE%20STUDENT%20ONE%20SPORT%20-%20Sheikh%20Kamaruddin%2001.pdf,” you will soon realise that our government has indeed acknowledged the importance of sports and has encouraged the allocation of resources to sports schools and sports fraternities. Even though our government has long tried to promote physical education through such means (e.g. funding as mentioned in the article), it has only been through LCW’s recent match that we can see the impact of bringing hope and promoting the proper attitude towards sports in Malaysia. To you, what is flawed here? Maybe it isn’t even flawed— but in your opinion, what are better policies to help improve our nation’s situation?

Let’s hear it from you: what are ways to help develop our country’s innate potential in sports?