Recently, it has been thought swimmers in MASA have expanded, especially among the kiddies. Then of course, it is a good thing to see more kids with potential putting up their talents in the pool.
But just a little thought personally, it is school holiday now which most kids have the time to enjoy their activities. But yet, most of the kids who come swimming are often being pushed by their parents. In way, still, majority of the swimmers (young ones) are there for recreational fitness activity or as well as learn to swim in order to strengthen their skills. In this case, many talents could be spotted as well throughout the potentiality exposed by the swimmers themselves. I was a little surprise some kids eventually love training so much that they even asked for more, yet of course some felt tired and would just wanna go home.
As a matter of fact, which I would like to emphasize on are the kids who are enthusiastically about swimming. Now, as a few of us have seen (including coaches) and I'm not too sure about the committee members, each year MASA is losing senior swimmers gradually to a level where Group 1 will no longer perform to the expected level in nation wide standard. Hence, my point is Senior batch is having less swimmers, especially those who can perform, and current avail swimmers are only able to perform with limitations due to physical size matter, and as well as their commitment to training and goals which have been seen very little. It doesn't matter how many medals they have won or where they have been to, but it is their performance that has to be widely recognized; time achievement, performance efficiency, consistency, persistence, perseverance, commitment, determination and discipline.
So the idea it why not start putting more focus in the younger groups where coaches are able to develop and further improve the standard of these youngsters. Of course, I'm not saying total ignorance on the senior side but coaches and committee must have a proper management in balancing such development and maintenance of swimmers' performance. As many people have complains and argue over years in the MASA committee, disregards who they are, as swimmers we have all seen words and arguments that demeaned swimmers' potential. You see, a committee is a management in handling its association with objectives, strategy, and commitment of course. MASA is a none profitable association as I could see, then again many would always face the problems of arguments among parents regarding the advantage of being in the committee. Likewise, most parents are in the committee for the sake of benefiting and protecting their own child. Hence, I do strongly against the ideology of having parents as committee as over the years, perhaps ever since MASA was born, many unnecessary problems have been caused and never resolved which still remains as a conflict till these date, thus MASA has nearly become as Political Party instead.
Thus, why not have better people who are capable of running the association professionally? Professional standard means to be able to manage the association with proper, formal, and standardized formative management strategy. It is already year 2008 right now, and in the world of globalization and modernization why not have things workout in a better way rather using informal and unplanned strategical management skills and format. Perhaps, people should really consider a better change if they want to further improve MASA, not just by words but ACTIONS!
Now, there is also another major problem which is strongly encountered in MASA. Parents and their dissatisfaction, and complains. Parents play an important role in this matter because they are the ones who send their children for training. But then, some parents think they can be better than coaches and often make noises. Again, those noises are complains and gossips which are against the committee and coaches. Now, first thing first, a committee must stay firm to itself because it is the committee that run the association and not parents who stand watch their children swimming. A committee has to be firm and strong at its own feet, and not easily moved by others such as parents, media, press, public, etc. Thus, if a committee would be easily escalated and provoked by these groups outside the committee, which in the end it would mean a fall for the committee's stronghold where they are unable to protect themselves and the association. Hence, people will easily interfere and affect MASA easily, as it is just like cutting down a tree with a chainsaw.
MASA, the only swimming association in Miri, has been known to produced great swimmers in Malaysia. Of course, it is where all great swimmers started swimming, but they furthered themselves in other places as well. In the AGM meetings over the years, the committee has constantly reported MASA swimmers have gone to SEA Games, Commonwealth Games, Olympic Games, and World Champs as well. Okay, honestly from my opinion, there is no doubt they started swimming from MASA, BUT these swimmers with high achievements were also being trained somewhere else after they left MASA, which is Bukit Jalil. These swimmers no longer train in MASA ever since their departure to Bukit Jalil. Okay, there is nothing by putting them as the iconic figure for swimming, but it would be wiser to describe their achievement in a proper truth. Many people were let confused because they often thought these highly performed swimmers were being trained in Miri. Yes, only when they were still young and not older.
Take some time to think about it readers. I believe some of you may have also gone through problems where it became the very reason why you quit swimming, or also swimmers or parents who are still actively involve in swimming. It is time to be more considerate, intellectual, rational, mature and supportive, disregard who you are. Swimming is a sport, it is not a fight of political matters. It is your child who swim in the pool and compete, not you because you are only a spectator on the bench just like anyone else sitting beside you. Love your children? Better start considering what your child has to say, and not you. As for the committee, it is in the hope that they are to keep up a better work and towards better future, because improvement is the very need for better expectations.
But just a little thought personally, it is school holiday now which most kids have the time to enjoy their activities. But yet, most of the kids who come swimming are often being pushed by their parents. In way, still, majority of the swimmers (young ones) are there for recreational fitness activity or as well as learn to swim in order to strengthen their skills. In this case, many talents could be spotted as well throughout the potentiality exposed by the swimmers themselves. I was a little surprise some kids eventually love training so much that they even asked for more, yet of course some felt tired and would just wanna go home.
As a matter of fact, which I would like to emphasize on are the kids who are enthusiastically about swimming. Now, as a few of us have seen (including coaches) and I'm not too sure about the committee members, each year MASA is losing senior swimmers gradually to a level where Group 1 will no longer perform to the expected level in nation wide standard. Hence, my point is Senior batch is having less swimmers, especially those who can perform, and current avail swimmers are only able to perform with limitations due to physical size matter, and as well as their commitment to training and goals which have been seen very little. It doesn't matter how many medals they have won or where they have been to, but it is their performance that has to be widely recognized; time achievement, performance efficiency, consistency, persistence, perseverance, commitment, determination and discipline.
So the idea it why not start putting more focus in the younger groups where coaches are able to develop and further improve the standard of these youngsters. Of course, I'm not saying total ignorance on the senior side but coaches and committee must have a proper management in balancing such development and maintenance of swimmers' performance. As many people have complains and argue over years in the MASA committee, disregards who they are, as swimmers we have all seen words and arguments that demeaned swimmers' potential. You see, a committee is a management in handling its association with objectives, strategy, and commitment of course. MASA is a none profitable association as I could see, then again many would always face the problems of arguments among parents regarding the advantage of being in the committee. Likewise, most parents are in the committee for the sake of benefiting and protecting their own child. Hence, I do strongly against the ideology of having parents as committee as over the years, perhaps ever since MASA was born, many unnecessary problems have been caused and never resolved which still remains as a conflict till these date, thus MASA has nearly become as Political Party instead.
Thus, why not have better people who are capable of running the association professionally? Professional standard means to be able to manage the association with proper, formal, and standardized formative management strategy. It is already year 2008 right now, and in the world of globalization and modernization why not have things workout in a better way rather using informal and unplanned strategical management skills and format. Perhaps, people should really consider a better change if they want to further improve MASA, not just by words but ACTIONS!
Now, there is also another major problem which is strongly encountered in MASA. Parents and their dissatisfaction, and complains. Parents play an important role in this matter because they are the ones who send their children for training. But then, some parents think they can be better than coaches and often make noises. Again, those noises are complains and gossips which are against the committee and coaches. Now, first thing first, a committee must stay firm to itself because it is the committee that run the association and not parents who stand watch their children swimming. A committee has to be firm and strong at its own feet, and not easily moved by others such as parents, media, press, public, etc. Thus, if a committee would be easily escalated and provoked by these groups outside the committee, which in the end it would mean a fall for the committee's stronghold where they are unable to protect themselves and the association. Hence, people will easily interfere and affect MASA easily, as it is just like cutting down a tree with a chainsaw.
MASA, the only swimming association in Miri, has been known to produced great swimmers in Malaysia. Of course, it is where all great swimmers started swimming, but they furthered themselves in other places as well. In the AGM meetings over the years, the committee has constantly reported MASA swimmers have gone to SEA Games, Commonwealth Games, Olympic Games, and World Champs as well. Okay, honestly from my opinion, there is no doubt they started swimming from MASA, BUT these swimmers with high achievements were also being trained somewhere else after they left MASA, which is Bukit Jalil. These swimmers no longer train in MASA ever since their departure to Bukit Jalil. Okay, there is nothing by putting them as the iconic figure for swimming, but it would be wiser to describe their achievement in a proper truth. Many people were let confused because they often thought these highly performed swimmers were being trained in Miri. Yes, only when they were still young and not older.
Take some time to think about it readers. I believe some of you may have also gone through problems where it became the very reason why you quit swimming, or also swimmers or parents who are still actively involve in swimming. It is time to be more considerate, intellectual, rational, mature and supportive, disregard who you are. Swimming is a sport, it is not a fight of political matters. It is your child who swim in the pool and compete, not you because you are only a spectator on the bench just like anyone else sitting beside you. Love your children? Better start considering what your child has to say, and not you. As for the committee, it is in the hope that they are to keep up a better work and towards better future, because improvement is the very need for better expectations.
by Jack Ho
1 comment:
You can always approach the local Swimming Association Authority, depending on where you are.
Cheers.
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