New Delhi: On Monday, World champion PV Sindhu received a huge setback as her coach Kim Ji Hyun resigned from her post on personal grounds.
Kim’s family requires her presence in New Zealand to tend to her husband, who suffered a stroke a few weeks back and may need surgery to get better. Kim would be required to stay in New Zealand with her family and take care of her husband at least for the next six months. Kim even has said that she is yet not sure about her return. And with Monday’s development, it is confirmed that she will not return.
Last month, Sindhu, the World No. 3, thrashed Nozomi Okuhara 21-7, 21-7 to win her first gold medal and fifth overall at the Badminton World Championships. After her victory in Basel, Sindhu thanked Kim for the improvement she has made under her.
I really focussed this time and of course now I have a new coach — Miss Kim. I’ve been training under her for the past couple of months and certainly I have improved a lot under her. I am really very thankful to her,” Sindhu had said.
Kim is an experienced badminton coach. Also, the 45-year-old Kim is a gold medallist in the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games and won the World Junior Girls title in Jakarta in 1989. She took part in two Olympics in 1996 and 2000 and retired in 2001. A lot of her success came in team tournaments like the Uber and Sudirman Cups.
