School owner's kindness helped produce badminton star
It all began in a Bangkok dessert factory 11 years ago.
Little Ratchanok Inthanon had to stick around her parents, whose duty was to make thong yod, a traditional sweet made of egg yolk and sugar, in a section dangerous for children because of the hot caramel, gas and fire. Out of concern for their safety, factory owner Kamala Thongkorn believed that the only way to prevent accidents was to take youngsters including Ratchanok somewhere else where they would be in good hands. So they were sent in a van along with young badminton beginners to Banthongyord Badminton School, which she also ran.
Since then, the school has emerged as one of the country’s leading badminton clubs, which introduced two big names to the international arena: 2010 Youth Olympic Games gold medallist Pisit Poodchalat and three-time world junior champion Ratchanok.
"Several badminton players are children of my workers. I saw them play near their working parents and was afraid accidents could happen. From then on, we prepared badminton items for them and sent them to the courts,” said Kamala, known among badminton players as "Mae Puk".
With such goodwill, Kamala has paved the way to a better life for these youngsters, especially Ratchanok, who instead of a life in the factory has become the nation’s badminton icon.
“In layman’s terms, she would have been just an ordinary country girl if she hadn’t been given this opportunity,” said Kamala, who started the badminton academy 20 years ago. It was renovated in 2004 into a complex with a huge budget of Bt100 million.
Alongside other registered learners who paid for their courses, Ratchanok was allowed to practise badminton for free. The five-year-old had no idea that one day the sport would make such an impact on her life. “I liked to go to the courts because it was fun to have a lot of friends there,” said Ratchanok or “May”, who stood out from the rest. She was the hardest-working and the most gifted of the bunch, though her first coach Xie Zhihua does not entirely agree.
“There is no such thing as talent, there is only hard work. No one could practise 365 days a year like her. She practised every day, short or long hours,” said Xie, who has been in Thailand for two decades.
It did not take long for Ratchanok to register her name in the sport’s circles. After a year she won an event in Udon Thani at the age of six and by the time she turned nine, the precocious girl had captured the under-nine category.
“Sometimes she came up with unexpected shots,” said Mother Puk, explaining why her prodigy was such a rare kind.
Winning three consecutive World Junior Badminton Championship titles between 2009 and 2011, the first at the age of only 14, made her the youngest winner in local history, thanks to Kamala’s faith in her.
Recently the whole nation acknowledged Ratchanok’s stardom during the live coverage of the Olympics quarter-finals match with world No 2 Wang Xin of China. The 17-year-old Games debutante pushed her high-calibre rival to the limit by wining the first game and standing just five points away from the biggest victory in her career. But a lack of experience took its toll as she squandered the lead and lost the match.
“That loss keeps haunting me. I was so close to victory. It was a shame, because I wanted to win so badly,” moaned Ratchanok, who turned emotional every time the match rewound in her head.
Yet Ratchanok found some consolation on her way back home. She was offered an estimated million-baht deal to play in the Super League in China for a three-month season. She will receive not only the biggest cheque in her life but also the opportunity to sharpen her skills with top players.
Currently at No 10 in the world, Ratchanok vows she will bounce back in the next Olympiad in Brazil to pursue the ultimate dream she will not let go until it’s fulfilled. “I made it to the quarter-finals in my first Olympics. In the next four years, I will try to bring home a medal as a present for Thai fans. If I cannot make it, there’s still the 2020 Olympics and more,” the strong and determined teenager said.
