Badminton: Zii Jia pays tribute to family as his strongest supporter for Olympics glory

PETALING JAYA: It’s not blood that makes a family, it’s love.

And professional singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia agreed with the old saying and yesterday, he underlined the importance of family in his badminton career and his chase for Olympic Games glory by sharing an emotional and touching poem for his family on Team LZJ Instagram.

Zii Jia admitted that it was his family’s love that has been pushing him to turn his childhood Olympic dream into reality.

Coupled by his passion for the sport and playing for the nation, world No. 7 Zii Jia is attempting to do what no Malaysian has achieved before – to win the Olympic gold at the Paris Games from July 26-Aug 11.

Malaysia’s previous best achiever in the singles is Datuk Lee Chong Wei, who has won silver medal in three Olympics edition – 2008, 2012 and 2016.

It is no secret that Zii Jia, 26, inherited his natural fondness for sport from his parents Lee Chee Hin and Leow Siet Peng, who were school teachers and former international basketball players.

His sister Zii Yii was a former national shuttler and currently serves as his personal manager while their younger brother Lee Tao has always remained as their staunch supporter although he didn’t take up badminton actively.

While Zii Jia has often spoken about his desire to become the champion, he was clear on who were his motivation in a short but sweet poem which explained the strength behind the player’s daring goal to go for gold at the Olympics.

“My parents’ strength instilled a dream. A dream shared with my siblings.

The root of that dream further strengthened from love and nurture by the whole family,” read the post.

“Now I walk on the path of that dream. A dream made possible by past heroes. The dream for those who are brave enough.

“I’m that brave, to not only walk that path, but to go further than anyone before. To honour their sacrifices and make the dream of a nation a reality. I dare to dream because of my family’s love, the love I have for badminton, and the love for my country.”

It was a clear and loud message on how single-minded Zii Jia has been chasing the Olympic dream and the way his family had been backing him all the way.

Recent results have also been encouraging where he has won the Thailand and Australian Opens besides becoming the runner-up at the Malaysian Masters over the last two months under the guidance of coach Wong Tat Meng.

Thailand and Australia also marked his first two titles of the year but the comprehensive run in four tournaments, including a quarter-final finish at the Indonesian Open, has given his camp and the Malaysian fans renewed hope of seeing something spectacular from the Alor Setar-born player.