Taufik splits with coach; concern over Olympics bid

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Taufik Hidayat got a financial boost in the run-up to his 2004 Olympics campaign, but Indonesia's number one shuttler disclosed after the contract signing here on Wednesday that he had already parted with his coach in suspiciously controversial manner.

Taufik and doubles specialist Candra Wijaya signed a one-year contract, whose value was not known, with Samsung Electronics Indonesia (SEIN), under which the latter is committed to providing financial support for the players' tournament expenses throughout the season until the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Candra, who was a gold medalist with Tony Gunawan at the 2000 Olympics, has made it a third year of partnership.

It is the first year partnership by Taufik, and it should pave way for the 22-year-old to have a chance of attaining one among the major titles that has become his obsession.

However, the road to Olympic gold could be rough for Taufik as it appears that he had not trained under coach Joko Supriyanto for the past three weeks.

"I last trained with him one week before my competition in the Denmark Open," Taufik said. His face showed a downbeat mood.

The Denmark Open lasted from Sept. 23 to Sept. 28, where Taufik, who had successfully defended his Indonesia Open title in two weeks earlier, crashed out in the quarterfinals.

"I have been training away from Cipayung," he said, referring to the Indonesian Badminton Center, where national badminton athletes are groomed.

"It's hard, I have to admit, to train without a coach. But that's what I have to do now," said Taufik, adding that he left the matter to the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI).

Taufik said that it was Joko who left him, but the badminton star would not disclose the reason behind the fallout.

"He wouldn't tell you why, would he? Why should I?" he said.

Joko was not available for comment.

When contacted, Christian Hadinata, the director of the Cipayung center, asked the media not to harp on the issue, saying that he could not comment as yet.

"Don't overhype this. We are certainly looking for a way out," he told The Jakarta Post.

When asked whether the apparent rift could affect Indonesia's Olympic campaign, he said: "we still have a lot of time to prepare. Hopefully, we can bring it to an end soon."

While the truth has yet to be discovered, Taufik's breakup with his coach is yet another problem on his list of coach-player relationship issues.

By the end of 2002 he was upset with the national badminton association and protested against the association's decision not to partner him with his preferred coach.

The fallout led him to his threat of quitting the national team and defecting to Singapore. The two side came to compromise at the end.

The bumps in the road in his training could wreck Taufik's ambition to win gold in Athens.

Taufik went to the 2002 Sydney Olympics as a favorite only to exit in the quarterfinals at the hands of eventual champion Ji Xinpeng.