Badminton prodigy Pitchamon, 15, lauds role of her sponsor Principal Healthcare

Pitchamon "Pink" Opatniput, a 15-year-old badminton player, said she was very glad and excited to join the Thailand national team at the 31st SEA Games in Vietnam, promising to win a gold medal for Thai fans.
She made the remarks during a Principal Healthcare (PRINC) ceremony to hand out 100,000 baht cash to her for winning the Victor Swedish Open 2022 in Uppsala.
The felicitation ceremony was held at Princ Hospital Suvarnabhumi in the Bang Phli district of Samut Prakan province.
"I would like to thank PRINC for supporting me," she said, adding that she would not have been able to participate in the international competition without support from PRINC. "Apart from family and coach, PRINC was another supporter who boosted my morale during the matches overseas,” she said.
She added that the cash prize would be shared with her parents and coach, while the remainder would be saved to be used for sport-related issues.

Principal Capital Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer Tanee Maneenut said the hospital has supported Pitchamon for four years, adding that the hospital has witnessed her intention to become a professional badminton player at the international level.
"Pink is another inspiration to the youth, to engage in physical exercises and play sports. We believe that she will be able to achieve even more success in international competitions," he said. "We have supported her for training and travel overseas since childhood and we are ready to continue supporting her."
During the ceremony, Pitchamon spoke about the tough path to becoming a badminton player, such as hard training and the intense physical workouts. She was battling an injury at the start of the Victor Swedish Open 2022.

"I have been going through hard training with only one holiday a week for years. I put all my efforts into my morning and evening training and take a break as much as possible during holidays," she explained, adding that she also hung out with friends during holidays.
"Before winning the title at the Victor Swedish Open 2022, I had to withdraw from the Estonian International competition due to a foot injury as the weather was very cold. It hurt a lot."
Pitchamon is being coached by Kasemsak Chatujinda, a former Thai national team badminton player and Kasemsak Badminton Academy president. Meanwhile, Phiphat Opatniput is another trainer who has coached Pitchamon since she was five years old.
Pitchamon had won many titles since she was a junior but what made her an overnight sensation was when she won the World Badminton U15 Shonai Invitational 2019, beating a Japanese player in straight games in just 28 minutes. She was only 12 years old at the time.

Her triumph in the Victor Swedish Open 2022 made her eligible to join the Thailand national team to participate in the 31st SEA Games in Vietnam and the Thomas & Uber Cup in Thailand.
“Our aim was to help Pink achieve success at the international level within two years and we just asked her to do her best without any pressure. I would like to praise her parents for training her since childhood, especially her attitude in competitions," Kasemsak said.
He said he did not know whether the Badminton Association of Thailand would pick her to participate in the doubles or the singles, but he confirmed that she had finished first in the trials.

He added that he wanted to see Pitchamon participate in the Olympic Games.
With her outstanding performances and skills, Pitchamon is considered the new wave of talent to watch out for, and she would become an important member of the Thai women's badminton team in the future.