Lee Wan WahAMN (Chinese: 李萬華; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lí Bān-hôa, born 24 November 1975) is a former badminton player from Malaysia. He is currently the Japan junior team coach.[1]
Career overview
Lee made his debut in Olympic Games in 2000 Sydney. Partnered with Choong Tan Fook, they advanced to the semi-finals stage, but lost to South Korean pair Lee Dong-soo and Yoo Yong-sung in the rubber game. The duo played in the bronze medal match against another South Korean duo Ha Tae-kwon and Kim Dong-moon, but lost in straight game with the score 2–15, 8–15.
In 2008, Lee participated in Jakarta for the Malaysian Thomas Cup team, being Choong's partner. Lee could not compete in the semi-final, because Choong was sick. Consequently, Malaysia was beaten by the defending champion China.
At the Beijing Olympic Games, Lee and Choong, seeded four, surprisingly lost to South Korean Lee Jae-jin and Hwang Ji-man, who captured the bronze medal.
In November 2009, Lee and Choong reached Hong Kong Open Super Series semi-final but they lost to Denmark's Lars Paaske and Jonas Rasmussen.
Coaching
In October 2008, Lee left Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) and established a company, Pioneer Sdn Bhd, with fellow badminton players Wong Choong Hann, Chan Chong Ming, and Chew Choon Eng, to coach young badminton players in Kota Damansara and Bandar Mahkota Cheras. They hoped that the company will turn into academies for local and international players.[2]
In 2015, Lee Wan Wah started coaching professionals Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong. Koo and Tan went to look for Lee to be their coach since they Koo and Tan left the national set up. They have a successful partnership under Lee, and Koo and Tan are doing well in tournaments.