Shalin Zukifli

Shalin Zulkifli (born March 28, 1978 in Islington, London, England) is a Malaysian professional ten pin bowler and former Asian Number 1. She has played and won various national and international tournaments, and has at various points in her career ranked Number 1 of the professional ten pin bowlers in Malaysia and Asia. Bowling in the U.S.A., she was a quarterfinalist at the 2008 U.S. Women's Open, and currently competes in the 2008-09 PBA Women's Series.

Shalin was born in North Islington and spent her childhood in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She began bowling at the age of 9 and joined the national bowling team in the late 1980s.^[1] In 1991 she was named Selangor’s Most Promising Sportsgirl of the Year, and in 1994 became the youngest player and first Malaysian to win the Ladies Open of the Kent Malaysian All-Stars.

Shalin holds a degree in Sports Science that specializes in Sports Psychology and Coaching. She currently owns and runs a Tenpin Bowling Alley at The Curve, a shopping mall located in Mutiara Damansara.

Awards

1994

• Kent Malaysian All-Stars - Ladies Open Champion

1996

• 2nd World Tenpin Team Cup (Calgary, Canada) - Bronze Medal Champion & Voted MVP
• AMF World Cup (Northern Ireland) - 2nd Position

1998

• AMF World Cup (Kobe, Japan) - Record for qualifying for 3 consecutive step ladder final; overall 3rd Position

1999

• Asian Youth (Spore)
  • Doubles Gold Medal Champion
  • Team Gold Medal Champion
• South East Asian Games (Brunei)
  • Doubles Gold Medal Champion
  • Trios Gold Medal Champion
  • Team Gold Medal Champion
  • All-Events Gold Medal Champion
  • Masters Gold Medal Champion
  • Singles Bronze Medal Champion

2001

• World Tenpin Masters (Essex, England) - Became the first female champion of this event, defeating Finland's Tore Torgersen in the finals
• South East Asian Games (Malaysia)
  • Singles Gold Medal Champion
  • All-Events Gold Medal Champion
  • Trios Gold Medal Champion
  • Team Gold Medal Champion
  • Set 8 Sea Games Records
• Kota Kinabalu Open - Singles Champion

2002

• Thailand International Open - Women's Open Masters Champion
• Philippines International Open - Women Champion

2003

• World Tenpin Team Cup - Women's Team Champion
• World Tenpin Bowling Championship - Ladies Team of Five Gold Medal Champion
• Santa Claus Open - 2nd Position
• Asian Bowling Tour Grand Slam - Women Champion
• Asian Bowling Tour Malaysia (Philippines Leg) - Women Champion
• World Tenpin - Team Cup Gold Medalist

2004

• Bahrain Open - Ladies Open Champion
• Sinai Open - Women Champion
• ABF Tour (Thailand Leg) - Women Champion
• Malaysian International Open - Women Champion

2005

• 2nd Commonwealth Bowling Championship (Cyprus)
  • Masters Gold Medal Champion
  • Mix Doubles Gold Medal Champion
  • Team Gold Medal Champion
  • Singles Bronze Medal Champion
• Malaysian National Championship - Ladies Open Champion (4th consecutive win & 5th in career)

Accolades

• Malaysian Sportswoman Award (1997, 1996, 1994, 2001 & 2002)
• Malaysian National Champion (1996, 2001, 2002 & 2003)
• Malaysian Olympian Award (1994 & 1999)
• Asian Number 1 Rank (2000, 2001, 2002 & 2004)
• International Bowler of the Year (2002)
• International Bowling Hall of Fame Inductee (2004)

Bowling

Another sport which again is not a stranger to us Malaysians
Bowling
thanks to Shalin Zulkifli
what is bowling anyway?

Bowling is an Sport in which players attempt to score points by rolling a bowling ball along a flat surface either into objects called pins or to get close to a target ball. There are many forms of bowling, with one of the most recent being ten-pin bowling and the earliest dating back to ancient Egypt. Other places where bowling was first seen were ancient Finland and Yemen, and in 300 A.D. in Germany.The first standardized rules were established in New York City, on September 9, 1895.Today, bowling is enjoyed by 95 million people in more than ninety countries worldwide and continues to grow through entertainment mediums such as video games for home consoles and hand held devices.

Bowling is an anaerobic type of physical exercise, similar to walking with free weights. Bowling helps in burning calories and works muscle groups not usually exercised. The flexing and stretching in bowling works tendons, joints, ligaments, and muscles in the arms and promotes weight loss. Apart from the physical benefits it also has psycho-social benefits, strengthening friendships or creating new ones in groups.

Like any other physical activity, warming up helps to prevent injuries. Checking the soles of shoes for sticky objects helps to avoid falls. Since bowling balls are heavy with varying weight ranges, to avoid back and wrist injury they should be picked up with both hands. It’s recommended to bend one’s knees while picking up bowling balls to avoid back injuries. The bowling ball return mechanism has a driven wheel, and bowlers should keep their hands clear of it.

The second category of bowling is usually played outdoors on a lawn. At outdoor bowling, the players throw a ball, which is sometimes eccentrically weighted, in an attempt to put it closest to a designated point or slot in the bowling arena. Included in the outdoor category:

• Lawn bowls
• Bocce
• Pétanque
• Irish road bowling

Dato Nicol Ann David

From her back-to-back Women’s World Championships in 2005, 2006 and 2008, to being the youngest ever squash player to embrace the #1 spot, Nicol Ann David is the legendary undisputed world no. 1 squash player. Nicol’s unprecedented feats have certainly redefined ‘success’ in the Malaysian sports arena. This enthralling squash player has not failed to constantly dazzle the international squash scene.

Nicol was born on 26 August 1983 in the Pearl of the Orient- Penang, Malaysia. She is a daughter to Desmond David, an engineer and Ann Marie David, a now retired school teacher. She has two sisters named Lianne Marie and Cheryl Therese, both of whom are also accomplished squash players at the national level. Nicol scored a striking 7As in her Penilaian Menengah Rendah(PMR) and 9As in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia(SPM)- a living testament to the fact that one can not only excel at both academic and sports, but also have a balance family life.

The spectacular story of Nicol David goes way back when she was merely 5 years old where she started playing squash for fun. With sports blood running in the family, Nicol began her formal training at the tender age of 8. While training at the Bukit Dumbar Squash Centre, Nicol was talent-spotted by Miss Ee Phoeh Hoon, who led her to representing her home state of Penang with her sisters.

Nicol’s first international win was in 1994 in the Hong Kong Under-13 category. Soon, Nicol began climbing her way up, clinching title by title, and conquering the challenges under the tutelage of coach Richard Glanfield.

Nicknamed the Pink Duracell Bunny for her extraordinary speed and agility, Nicol began dominating the squash scene by winning the Asian championship as well as becoming the youngest player to become the world’s woman junior champion- when she was merely 15 years old. In the process of becoming the junior champion, she startled players who were ranked in the world’s top 20. She won the junior championship twice and became the only 2 players in the history of squash to have achieved the incredible feat.

Nicol set the world squash rankings ablaze at a staggering young age. By the time she reached the age of 16, the squash wonderment was already making the world’s top 10 list and soaring up. Nicol has an invincible track record in Asia after winning the Asian championship a whopping 5 times in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2008.

In December 2005, Nicol became the youngest world champion after beating Rachel Grinham in the final of the Women’s World Open in Hong Kong.

In January 2006, at only 23 years old, Nicol reached a new height when she took over the helm as the world’s number one woman squash player. Nicol is not only the first Malaysian to take over the crown but is also the first Asian woman to be ranked number one.

Nicol is applauded not only for her squash but also her as a person. In the year 2002, Nicol was inducted Malaysia’s first goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Developments Programme [UNDP]. The squash queen also carried the Olympic torch on behalf of Malaysia during the torch relay ahead of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Nothing short of remarkable, Nicol plays her game with intense focus and grit, the marvelment roped in 7 WISPA titles in the year 2005, 6 titles in the year 2006, 8 titles in the year 2007, and an astounding 10 titles in 2008. Nicol was also named the WISPA Player of the Year in the years 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.

In July 2007, Nicol was conferred an honorary degree- the Master of Arts honoris causa from the University of Notthingham for her remarkable accomplishments both on and off court. And in December, Nicol was announced as the winner of the inaugural Asian Sportswoman of the Year Award, beating 100 athletes from 25 sporting bodies and national Olympic Councils from 15 countries.

And in the year 2008, Nicol was conferred the `Order of Merit’ by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin(King of Malaysia). With the conferment, Nicol, then 24, becomes the first recipient of the highest Malaysian Award which was established in 1975, and is limited to 10 recipients who have made significant contributions in arts, science and humanity. Nicol then went on to become Malaysia’s youngest Datuk upon receiving the Darjah Setia Pangkuan Negeri (DSPN) from her home state of Penang. She was also awarded The Outstanding Young Malaysian Award for Personal Development & Accomplishment, followed by a number of local and international honours all in the same year.

The magic of Nicol lies in her modest ways and strong family values. The triple world champion is currently based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. She is coached by Liz Irving- a former world number 2 and 1997 World Doubles Squash Champion.

When asked what plans she had in mind for after her playing career, the 6-times Malaysian Sportswoman of the Year Award recipient said that she hoped to be part of getting squash into the Olympics and making squash known throughout the world; not forgetting setting up a squash academy for kids in Malaysia.

Living life to the full, Nicol’s outstanding squash achievements, academic excellence and enchanting personality has made her a role model to fans worldwide. No doubt, Nicol’s amazing drive and determination has and will always inspire people for years to come.

All hail Nicol David- the true Malaysian Idol!!

Malaysia Boleh!

As the World Number 1, Nicol David has traveled an interesting route towards success. Listed below is a brief summary of her achievements:

2009

CIMB Kuala Lumpur Open (runner-up)
Texas Open
Cayman Islands Open
Seoul Oopen

2008

Apawamis Open
Asian Squash Championship
CIMB KL Open
Dunlop British Open
Seoul Women’s Open
CIMB Malaysian Open
CIMB Singapore Masters
Forexx Dutch Open
Hi-Tec Manchester World Open
Qatar Classic
Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Open

2007

CIMB KL Open Champion
Sheikha Al Saad Kuwait Open Champion
Qatar Classic (06) Champion
Seoul Open Finalist
CIMB Malaysian Open Champion
CIMB Singapore Masters Champion
Forexx Dutch Open Champion
Dunlop British Open Finalist
Women’s World Open Q-Finalist
Qatar Classic Champion
Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Open Champion

2006

Apawamis Open Finalist
CIMB KL Open Finalist
Asian Games Women’s Singles Event Gold Medallist
Women’s World Open World Champion
Dunlop British Open Champion
Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Open Champion
Hotel Equitorial Penang Open Champion
CIMB Malaysian Open Champion
Qatar Airways Challenge Champion

2005

Country View KL Open Champion
Sheikha Al Saad Kuwait Open Champion
Mamut Dutch Open Champion
CIMB Malaysian Open Champion
Dunlop British Open Champion
Carol Weymuller Open Champion
Women’s World Open World Champion

2004

Malaysian Airlines KL Open Finalist
Malaysian Open Finalist
Shanghai WISPA World Stars Championships Finalist

2003

Women’s World Open Bronze Medallist

2002

KL Open Champion
Asian Squash Championships- Singles Event Finalist
Asian Squash Championships Team Event Champion
Commonwealth Games Mix Doubles Event Silver Medallist

2001

Asian Squash Championships- Singles Event Champion
Asian Squash Championships - Team Event Champion
World Junior Championships World Junior Champion

2000

Asian Squash Championships- Singles Event Champion
KL Open Champion
Savcor Finnish Open Champion
SUKMA VIII Gold Medallist

1999

British Junior Open- Under 17 & Under 19 Champion
Asian Squash Championships- Singles Event Champion
Asian Squash Championships- Team Event Champion
German Junior Open- Under 19 Champion
Malaysian Junior Open- Under 19 Champion
World Junior Championships World Junior Champion
SEA Games Brunei- Team Event Gold Medallist
SEA Games Brunei- Singles Event Gold Medallist
Australian Junior Open- Under 19 Champion

1998

Asian Squash Championships- Singles Event Champion
KL Open Champion
Savcor Finnish Open Champion
SUKMA VIII Gold Medallist

1997

British Junior Open- Under 14 Champion
Asian Squash Championships- Team Event Gold Medallist
Australian Junior Open- Under 15 & Under 17 Champion
Scottish Junior Open- Under 16 Champion
SEA Games- Team Event Gold Medallist

1996

British Junior Open- Under 14 Champion
SUKMA- Team Event Gold Medallist
Australian Junior Open- Under 13 & Under 15 Champion
Scottish Junior Open- Under 14 Champion

1995

British Junior Open- Under 14 Champion
Malaysian Junior Open- Under 14 Champion
Hong Kong Junior Open- Under 14 Champion
Scottish Junior Open- Under 14 Champion

1994

SUKMA- Team Event Gold Medallist
Scottish Junior Open- Under 12 Champion

Awards & Honours

Conferred the Darjah Bakti The highest Malaysian honour - ‘Datuk’ Malaysia’s Sportswoman of the Year in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007 Universiti Sains Malaysia- Anugerah Kencana Canselor Award 2008
Felda Malaysian Youth Excellence Award 2008
The Outstanding Young Malaysian Award 2008
Carried the Olympic torch …in Athens, Greece and for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
WISPA Young Player of the Year Award 2005
WISPA Player of the Year Award 2006, 2007,2008
Asian Sportswoman of the Year Award 2007
Medals from Penang state- PJK, PJM
Medal from the Agung- AMN
Malaysia’s first goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme [UNDP]
One of the first entrants into Malaysia’s SportExcel Hall of Fame in July 2002
Universiti Sains Malaysia Golden Key Honorary Member
Master of Arts honoris causa from the University of Nottingham
Carried the Olympic torch on behalf of Malaysia during the torch relay ahead of the 2004 Olympic
Games in Athens, Greece.
Various local sports awards

Squash

Squash is definitely no stranger to us Malaysians
especially with World No.1 Nicol David
taking this sport by storm.
So here just a brief history of the squash game.

History of squash game

Squash and its parent sport spread toAmerica in the 1880s with the nations firts courts built at St. Paul’s Prep School, in Concord, New Hampshire. Due to a delay in shipping the proper racquets’s equipment, the boys used balls and racquets for the game of lawn tennis that had also been recently introduced to the country. Even after the proper equipment arrived, some still continued to use tennis equipment on both kinds of courts.

In the 1890s both squash racquets and tennis racquets had spread to adults in Boston and play started to become more formalized. In 1898, after the construction of a court at the Tuxedo Club in Texedo Park, New York, squash tennis became popular among members of New York society. Private courts were built on estates owned by such millonaires as William C.Whitney, J.P.Morgan and George Lauder Carnegie. By 1905, the Racquets and Tennis Club, Harvard,Princeton and Columbia Clubs in Manhattan had courts as did Brooklyn’s Crescent A.C and the Heights Casino.

In 1911 the National Squash Tennis Association was founded and organized by the banker, John W. Prentiss, Harvard Club of New York. Rules, equipment, and court dimensions became formalized.

Briefly the sport gained popularity and some limited play in other cities such as Buffalo, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, but soon squash racquets overshadowed squash tennis. But in New York City, the game maintained a strong following during 1920s and 1930s. A decision to introduce a highly pressurized ball hastened the decline of the sport. A faster ball was preferred by advanced players, but it discouraged novices. In an effort to make the game more accessible, tournament play was authorized on squash racquets courts. But for many years the sport attracted few new players. During World War II the special ball was no longer manufactured, so advanced players started to lose interest.

Two outstanding champions of the fifties were Robert Reeve and Trudy Porter. League play and tournaments continued with energy supplied by Norman F. Torrance in the 1950s. The sixties saw a revival as younger players took up the game and Jim Prigoff became National Champion and later President of the Squash Tennis Association and Richard C. "Dick" Squires became active when a special ball was once again available to players. Prigoff dominated the Nationals in the 1960's beating both Squires and Bacallao until he retired from the game in 1969. But competition by the new game of racquet ball prevented these later attempts from making any headway with the public. The annual nationals became the only formal tournament, but became the virtual private property of two men, Pedro A. Bacallao (1969-1980, 1986) and Gary Squires (1982-1983, 1985, 1987-2000) son of Dick Squires.

Manner of Play

Squash tennis is played by two players. An illustrated playing guide with rules was published by the NSTA in 1968.

At the beginning of the first game, a spin of the racquet is used to decide who serves first. In subsequent games of a match, the player who won the previous game serves first.

The server stands behind the floor service line, either to the left or right of the center line. Tossing the ball in the air, he strikes it with the racquet before the ball hits the ground. The service is good if the ball:

• first hits the front wall above the service line and below the out line (touching the lines is prohibited),
• without hitting the back wall, lands in front of the service line on the opposite side of the court, left or right (depending on the side the server).

This is the major difference between squash tennis and squash racquets. In the latter sport the ball must go beyond the floor service line into the receiver's box. But it is similar to lawn tennis, as the ball is served diagonally and lands in front of the service line. In squash racquets the server also stands in toward the side wall, rather than in the center of the court.

At the beginning, the server can chose which side he starts, left or right. One fault is allowed if the ball does not go out (i.e. does not hit or go above the out lines, strikes the telltale, nor hits the floor before hitting the front wall). If the server wins the point he must then switch to the opposite side of the court (left or right) before serving again, alternating each serve.

The standard serve is a gently hit ball that strikes just below the front wall out line, comes back in a high arc, then bounces just in front of the floor service line where it meets the side wall. Slight cut will help the ball hug the wall. A high bounce along the wall is more difficult to return. The receiver cannot strike the ball before it bounces on the floor.

PLAYING EQUIPMENT

A racquet or racket is a sports implement consisting of a handled frame with an open hoop across which a network of cord is stretched. It is used for catching or striking a ball in squash, lawn tennis, racquetball, and similar games—collectively known as racquet sports.

The frame was traditionally made of wood, and the strings out catgut. Wood is still used for real tennis, racquets, and xare. Otherwise most racquets are now made of synthetic ceramics or alloys. Catgut has been replaced by synthetic strings.

Dato Lee Chong Wei

Name: Lee Chong Wei (李宗伟)
Country: Malaysia
Gender: Male
Height: 174cm
Weight: 60kg
Handness: Right
Type of Match: Singles
Highest Ranking: 1
Current Ranking: 1

Was born in Georgetown, Penang at October 21, 1982. A professional badminton Malaysian player who stays in Bukit Mertajam, Penang Malaysia. He won the silver medal in 2008 China Olympic Games, thus becoming the first Malaysian ever to reach the final of the men's single event and ending Malaysia's Olympic medal drought since the 1996 Games.

Career Highlights:

Beijing Olympic 2008 Runners-up
5 times Malaysia Open Champion
1 time Chinese Taipei Open Champion
1 time Denmark Open Champion
1 time Swiss Open Champion
1 time Asian Badminton Championships Champion
1 time Indonesia Open
1 time Philippines Open
1 time Japan Open
1 time French Open
1 time Singapore Open
1 time Super Series Masters Finals

for more updates from Dato Lee Chong Wei himself

visit his blog

http://blog.leechongwei82.com/

Badminton

Badminton is no stranger to us Malaysians
with players like
-Lee Chong Wei
- Wong Mew Choo
- Muhammad Hafiz Hashim
- Khoo Kien Kiat
-Tan Boon Heong

So what was the actually history of badminton?

Badminton was first played in 5th century B.C. in China. Played for centuries by children in Asia, this was a cooperative game in which the players worked together to keep the "bird" in the air for as long as possible. The modern game originated in India as a grownup's version of this very old children's game known as battledore and shuttlecock, the battledore being a paddle and the shuttlecock a small feathered cork, now usually called a "bird." A net was added and the game had become a competitive sport called "poona" by the 1860s, when British Army officers were playing it in India. Some of them brought equipment back to England and introduced the new sport there during the early 1870s. When the game arrived in England players were using rackets, and the shuttlecock was put into play after each point by servants (where the term "to serve" or "service" came from). The game derives its name from its introduction in England in 1873 at a country estate called Badminton. It was played at a lawn party held by Duke of Beaufort at his country place, Badminton, in 1873, and it became known as "the Badminton game" among various guests who introduced it to other friends. Badminton was introduced in America in the 1870s, grew in popularity in the 1920s and 1930s, and became an Olympic medal sport in 1992.

Badminton Court

The court should be a rectangle defined by lines 1/ 2" wide (3.8cm) usually coloured white or yellow. An additional four marks may be made inside each sideline for singles of the right service court, 1 feet 9 inches and 3 feet 3 inches from the back boundry line. The marks shall be within the measurements between 1 feet 9inches to 1feet 10 1/2 inches and between 3 feet1/2 inches to 3 feet 3 inches from the outside of the back boundry line.

Shuttlecock

The shuttle weighs between 4.73 to 5.50 grams and should have 14 to 16 feathers fixed in a cork. The diameter of the cork is in between 2.5cm and 2.8cm.

Racket

The frame of the racket, including the handle, shall not exceed 680mm (26 3/4 inches) in overall length and 230mm (9 1/16 inches) in overall width. The overall length of the head shall not exceed 290mm (11 7/16 inches). The strung surface area shall not exceed 280mm (11 inches) in overall length and 220mm (8 5/8 inches) in overall width. The frame, including the handle, and the strings shall be free of attached objects and protrusions, other than those utilized solely and specifically to limit or prevent wear and tear, or vibration, or to distribute weight, or to secure the handle by cord to the player¡¦s hand, and which are reasonable in size and placement for such purposes; and shall be free of any device which makes it possible for a player to change materially the shape of the racket. The hitting surface of the racket shall be flat and consist of a pat tern of crossed strings connected to a frame and alternatively interlaced or bonded where they cross - and the stringing pattern shall be generally uniform and, in particular, not less dense in the centre than in any other area.

UH Badminton Club Rules:

• You are eligible to be our Badminton's Club member if you are a current University of Houston's Students/Faculty/Staff/Alumni. Need to show your Cougar One Card to enter the facility.
• Pay the membership fee of $10 per semester (students/staff/faculty/alumni). Visitors pay $3 per visit.
• Fill out UH Release Form and Club's Rooster.
• We currently have 40-50 active members, please limit your play. Take turn to play, so others can use the courts. Start and count the game as soon as you are in the court.
• Wear proper attire (shirts, shorts, and shoes). Bring your own badminton rackets and shuttlecocks. We provide the nets.