Professional men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia has officially rejected the offer to join the Road To Gold (RTG) programme in preparation for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games (LA2028).
This was confirmed by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh at an RTG press conference at the Youth and Sports Ministry Tower today.
However, Hannah said the door remains open for Zii Jia to join the RTG if he changes his mind in the future.
“Zii Jia is not joining the programme for his own reasons. So we respect his decision,” she said.
Zii Jia was among 16 athletes shortlisted under the RTG programme in April.
This is the second time the Paris Olympics bronze medallist has turned down an offer to join the RTG, following a similar decision in 2023.
Meanwhile, Team LZJ, in a statement today, expressed its gratitude to the RTG committee, especially Hannah, for offering Zii Jia the opportunity to join the prestigious programme.
According to Team LZJ, after full consideration, they decided to decline participation in the RTG.
“RTG is a programme reserved for the best of the best in the country, and since Zii Jia is still recovering from his injury, we feel that the appropriate assistance from the programme should be given to his fellow peers that are more deserving at this moment,” the statement said. – Bernama
