Taking a leap forward as a badminton powerhouse by introducing a new system… Conducted the Japanese national team for 18 years
Attention Ahn Se-young as a Korean player… “I want to contribute to the development of badminton in Korea”
The leadership of the Japanese national team, Park Joo-bong (58), is attracting attention once again, when the Japanese badminton team succeeded in winning gold medals in five consecutive world championships in their home country.
The Japanese national team succeeded in hunting for the gold medal in the ‘Beast Hanger’ on the 28th, when ‘signboard star’ Akane Yamaguchi (25) defeated China’s strongman Chen Yupei (24) in the women’s singles final at the 2022 World Individual Championships.
In addition to the women’s singles gold medal, Japan took a total of three medals, including a silver medal in mixed doubles and a bronze medal in women’s doubles.
With Yamaguchi’s victory, the Japanese national team also achieved ‘five consecutive titles’ since the 23rd tournament in 2017.
As a Korean national team that has not won six consecutive events since the 2015 tournament, the remarkable growth of the Japanese national team is only envious.
Compared to neighboring Korea and China, Japan, which used to be a badminton frontier, was now able to transform into a full-fledged badminton powerhouse.
Park, who won a gold medal in men’s doubles in badminton at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics as a member of the Korean national team, was appointed as the Japanese national team manager right after the 2004 Athens Olympics.
When 12 of the 13 badminton players who participated in the Athens Olympics were eliminated in the first round, the Japan Badminton Association hired coach Park, who was the top badminton star in Korea at the time.
Director Park proved that the choice of the association that hired him was right.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she reached the semifinals in women’s doubles, and at the 2012 London Olympics, she won an Olympic medal (silver) for the first time in Japanese badminton history in women’s doubles.
At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Japan finally won its first historical badminton gold medal.
Although he won only one bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics held in the home in 2021, the Japan Badminton Association recognized Park’s achievements and achievements and extended his tenure until the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Park, who is preparing for the 5th Olympics as the coach of the Japanese national team, said that when he first took the helm of the national team, everything was bleak.
Coach Park, who had an interview with a Korean reporter on the 28th, said, “At that time, Japanese badminton did not have a player management system as in Korea.
It was about going to international competitions by forming a national team centered on their team.” He said, “There was no concept of camp training itself.
“It was at the level where we would gather and train three or four days before the competition,” he said.
Manager Park overhauled all the systems of the national team one by one.
He said, “Before the international competition, the players were trained in camps and the national team coach’s salaries were established by the Japan Badminton Association,” he said. “He recalled the situation at the time.
The introduction of the new system soon provoked a backlash from the existing system.
Teams belonging to the national team players began to complain about the national team-oriented operation.
From then on, coach Park said that he had found a compromise that would satisfy the association, national team, and his team.
Manager Park said, “The national team had to grow together with the association and each team, so we could not ignore their complaints unilaterally. accepted,” he said.
Afterwards, under the direction of Park, the Japanese badminton’s international performance improved, and conflicts with the association and his team were resolved naturally.
Coach Park has been working as the Japanese national team manager for 18 years, but he still has a love for Korean badminton.
Because of this, he confessed that it would still be a burden if a match against Korean players in an international competition was made.
Manager Park said, “I can’t meet Korean players because I participate in more than 20 international competitions a year.
It is said that the world of competition is inevitable, but meeting Korean players in big competitions such as the Olympics and Asian Games is a burden,” he said.
A Korean player that he recently pays attention to is Ahn Se-young (20), who is considered the future of female badminton.
Although they lost 0-2 to Yamaguchi in the semifinals of this tournament, Manager Park praised Ahn Se-young as the best opponent to face Yamaguchi.
Manager Park said, “If Se-Young Ahn won the first set in the semi-finals, he would have had a chance to win.
I hope we both don’t see each other.”
Manager Park, who evaluated Ahn Se-young’s strength as defense, said, “The defense is very strong.
He is also a top-class athlete in the world in shuttlecock control and strength control.” He predicted, “I will be in full bloom at the Paris Olympics when I turn 24 in Korean age.”
However, he pointed out that physical strength reinforcement is necessary to compensate for the sharp decline in performance after the second set.
Coach Park said, “In order to play with top-class players, physical strength, mental strength, and injury management must be comprehensively done.”
As badminton was later adopted as an official sport at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Park only won one Olympic title despite his splendid career.
Coach Park, the first Olympic champion in badminton men’s doubles, still has the will to give his home country a second Olympic gold medal.
Manager Park said, “I literally want to win a second gold medal as a member of the Korean national team when I finish my contract with the Japanese national team. said
/yunhap news