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Outside camp forges Tommy's independency
Past the hurdle: Indonesiaâs Tommy Sugiarto returns a shot to Spainâs Pablo Abian during their first round match at the Total BWF World Championship at Istora Senayan, Jakarta, on Monday
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Past the hurdle: Indonesiaâs Tommy Sugiarto returns a shot to Spainâs Pablo Abian during their first round match at the Total BWF World Championship at Istora Senayan, Jakarta, on Monday. Tommy won 21-16, 21-13.(JP/Seto Wardhana) (JP/Seto Wardhana)
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span class="inline inline-center">Past the hurdle: Indonesia's Tommy Sugiarto returns a shot to Spain's Pablo Abian during their first round match at the Total BWF World Championship at Istora Senayan, Jakarta, on Monday. Tommy won 21-16, 21-13.(JP/Seto Wardhana)
Indonesian shuttler Tommy Sugiarto admits that life outside the national training camp has taught him to be more independent.
Tommy quit the training camp early this year citing that he 'no longer felt comfortable' after the Indonesian Badminton Association (PBSI) replaced men's singles coach Joko Suprianto with Hendry Suprianto.
'The most obvious thing is I have become more independent and that has somehow made me more confident,' Tommy said when asked about the difference between life inside and outside the training camp.
He overcame his first hurdle at the 2015 Total BWF World Championships when he defeated Pablo Abian of Spain 21-16, 21-13 on Monday. He will go up against Hong Kong's Wei Nan in the second round.
Since he quit the camp in January, Tommy, ranked 13th in the world, returned to his previous club, PB Pelita Bakrie Jakarta, as a professional player.
He won his first title this year at the Russian Open Grand Prix tournament last month.
Tommy said that he had to take care of aspects such as tickets, hotel bookings and local transportation when participating in tournaments abroad.
'At first it was quite exhausting but I have gotten used to it now. Thankfully we have the Internet, which is helpful when it comes to things like booking flights and hotel rooms,' Tommy further said.
'There are good and bad aspects of course but I will not reveal them all here,' he added.
The 27-year-old shuttler said he got full support from his family, including his father, Icuk Sugiarto, one of Indonesia's badminton legends.
Icuk held the world title in 1983 and was a member of Indonesia's Thomas Cup winning team in 1984.
His father's big name has helped him sign with several sponsors, including the sports affairs, a Malaysian club that has pledged its commitment to support Tommy's campaign for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.
