MANILA — The Philippine Badminton Association is aiming to further elevate our national team Smash Pilipinas as well as the development of the sport in the country..
With this, the federation tapped former top national team shuttler and multiple-time UAAP champion Kennie Asuncion-Robles to be its new program drector earlier this year.
"Her international experience and exposure made her the ideal choice. She understands the badminton community both domestically and internationally, and she knows how to succeed within the team's culture. She’s a proven winner," said PBad president Jude Turcuato.
Among the programs that are crucial for the former World’s No. 143 player will be the Philippine Badminton Open (PBO) which will start on June 5 especially since it will help the PBad with talent identification.
"My job is to help our national team in terms of planning for tournaments and checking their programs. Kumbaga, I'm coordinating with our coaches to help with whatever they need. And since that is the job, of course, bumababa siya to the juniors, so we all help each other," Asuncion-Robles said.
"We look forward to the PBO because, of course, that’s where you see how the national team performs, and at the same time, we expect to see either new faces or people who worked harder this time and who could show a little bit more. That’s our hope when we have tournaments, to identify potential players that we could add to the team.”
"Same with the juniors. We’re very active in sending them out for competitions because they will be the next in line to join the national team. We’re very aligned in our planning,” she continued.
But for the concurrent head coach of the Ateneo de Manila University badminton squads, these are all just part of the bigger picture, and that is being able to compete with the world’s best players who happened to be coming from Asia.
"I, for one, truly believe that Filipinos can excel in badminton. So, we’re hoping that since everything is more aligned now, we can produce more higher-ranked players,” she said.
"I’m excited whenever I see our players compete internationally because we know their capabilities. And we know that they just need more exposure and more tournaments. Once they have that, I believe they can show us what they’re capable of. Even though we’re in Asia, we can keep up with other Asian countries who are doing well on the international scene."
"I strongly believe in mindset. It’s pretty much like looking at the glass as half-empty or half-full. You can say it’s tough because we’re in Asia and our competition is strong. But you can also look at it as the challenge is bigger, the goal is higher; therefore, our players need to work doubly hard to achieve more.”
"I believe that with good guidance — we have good coaches in the national team — if we continue with our programs and help our players prepare not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally, I think that will help them a lot and improve their performance," continued the 2010 Lao International Challenge champion.
Aside from this, the former national athlete also hopes Smash Pilipinas will be able to compete in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
"The plan is to continue joining international competitions. It will be tough because it’s physically and emotionally draining; financially, it is also a big factor. But we have boss Manny V. Pangilinan to back us up and the support of the badminton community, I believe,” said Asuncion-Robles.
“We just have to be aligned in terms of setting goals for the players. I know the players want this. I know just by seeing how they train or talking to them, I know what they want. And I believe we have the same goal.
"That is, to have one of our players, maybe two or three, qualify for the Olympics,” she ended.
source: https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/2024/5/22/pbad-s-asuncion-robles-eyes-bright-future-for-smash-pilipinas-1459