One for the album: (from left) Soh Wooi Liang, Soo Beng Kiang and Soh Wooi Yik. Wooi Liang is Wooi Yik’s brother and Beng Kiang is their uncle.
Family and patriotism fire Wooi Yik up for golden mission
PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles shuttler Soh Wooi Yik is inspired to continue making his legendary uncle Soo Beng Kiang and the rest of his family members proud when he competes in the Paris Olympics.
Wooi Yik and Aaron Chia are out to create more history by adding the elusive Olympics gold to their 2022 World Championships title.
He has already surpassed his uncle’s proud achievements on the world stage and is keen to add what will be the biggest crown to his collection.
Beng Kiang, who is Wooi Yik’s mother’s brother, partnered Cheah Soon Kit and won silver in the world meet in 1993 and Asian Games in 1994.
The 26-year-old Wooi Yik has opened up on his family’s influence in his career.
Wooi Yik’s father Soh Goon Chup was a coach at the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) academy in the mid 1990s.
“My family always tell me that I have already achieved what they could not achieve and they are proud of me,” said Wooi Yik.
“My uncle could not win a medal in the OIympics although he came close but he was happy that I managed to do it.”
Beng Kiang came close to winning bronze in the 1996 Olympics with Tan Kim Her but agonisingly lost out to Indonesia’s Antonius Ariantho-Denny Kantano in a closely fought bronze medal playoff match.
The 56-year-old, though, had something to cheer about after seeing his nephew and Aaron win bronze in the 2021 Tokyo Games after they toppled another Indonesian pair, Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan.
Wooi Yik remains humble despite his achievements and credited his uncle for giving him important advice throughout his career.
“My uncle always gives me a lot of good advice,” said Wooi Yik.
“Just last month, I have been meeting him often and he has helped me with my preparations for Paris.
“He shared his experience about the game and I believe this will be useful for me. This Olympics will give me another opportunity to prove myself to my family.”
Expectations are high on Wooi Yik and Aaron once again in Paris as the pair have been Malaysia’s most consistent performers in major events over the past few years.
Wooi Yik and Aaron have won at least one medal in every major event in badminton including bronze in the 2023 World Championships, to go with their historic gold in 2022 and bronze in the Hangzhou Asian Games last October.
The duo also won gold in the 2019 Philippines SEA Games and bronze in the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
Wooi Yik and Aaron completed their collection of medals when they helped the team capture bronze in the Thomas Cup Finals in May to go with the two third place finishes in the Sudirman Cup in 2021 and 2023.
Wooi Yik said that the pair’s success in major competitions was down to their strong sense of patriotism.
“I think it’s patriotism as we know these major tournaments are important for our country,” said Wooi Yik.
“It’s the same in this Olympics as well, where we want to continue playing with pride and honour for our country.
“This is where our fire and motivation comes from. We want to fight hard and give everything for our team and for Malaysia.”
Wooi Yik and Aaron now have the opportunity to end the country’s long wait for gold in the Olympics and are fired up to deliver once again and write their names into the history books just like they did when they became the first shuttlers to capture the world title in 2022.
“Of course creating history is a motivation for us,” said the 27-year-old Aaron.
“We always wanted to achieve something that no one else managed and I think this time could be a chance for us.
“But at the same time we don’t want to put too much pressure on ourselves. We just keep telling ourselves to enjoy every match and never say die.”
