FOR some shuttlers, the dream is still on. For others, it’s only the beginning.
Hence, S. Kisona and Lai Pei Jing have got very different views on the current situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Pei Jing, a seasoned campaigner, believes there is still a glimmer of hope for her and mixed doubles partner, Tan Kian Meng, as far as the Olympics are concerned.
At the other end, youngster S. Kisona is ready for a whole new start.
Kian Meng-Pei Jing were almost ready to throw in the towel but are somewhat hopeful now of qualifying for the Tokyo Games next year, even if the odds are stacked against them.
“I have always wanted to play in the Olympics, that’s my dream. But as I grew older, I came to realise that sometimes we don’t get everything we want and that’s okay.
“That’s how I felt when Kian Meng and I started slipping further behind our Malaysian rivals (Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying and Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai).
“But everything has changed now. We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow.
“BWF have yet to make an announcement on the new qualifying system and because of that we dare to dream again,” said Pei Jing, who with Kian Meng, are ranked World No 13 on the suspended Race to Tokyo list, two rungs below national teammates Soon Huat-Shevon and six below Peng Soon-Liu Ying.
Based on the previous qualifying system, a country can have a maximum representation of two pairs if they are within the top eight bracket at the end of the one-year qualifying period.
Meanwhile, Kisona is looking at things from a different perspective.
The 2019 Sea Games gold medal winner is nowhere near qualifying for the Olympics next year, but is definitely a prospect for the 2024 Games in Paris.
Kisona is not troubling her mind with unnecessary pressure. “I don’t know if this MCO (Movement Control Order) is going to do me any good or not. No one knows anything right now.
“I just choose to be positive and keep doing what is expected of me.
“Like every other athlete, my dream is to compete in the Olympics some day, but for now I will be an athlete and keep safe and fit for my own good,” said Kisona, who is back home in Seremban with her family.