KUCHING: Sarawak’s badminton programme received a boost following the national call-up of Genevie Lim and Wafa Shahmina, underlining their progress at the international level.
The Sarawak Badminton Association (SBA) confirmed that the duo have been selected by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) to compete in both women’s doubles (WD) and mixed doubles (XD) at the Yonex Dutch Junior International 2026, scheduled from Feb 25 to Mar 1 in the Netherlands, followed by the Yonex German Junior 2026 from Mar 4 to 8.
All expenses for the two tournaments will be covered by BAM, underlining the national body’s confidence in the Sarawak pair.
Genevie, who hails from Kuching, and Wafa, from Miri, have been instructed to report to the Akademi Badminton Malaysia (ABM) on Feb 15 for centralised training ahead of their departure to Europe.
SBA president Datuk Sri Dr Wan Lizozman Wan Omar congratulated both players on their selection, describing it as the result of their ‘sterling achievement’ in the recent PETRONAS National Under-21 Championships 2026, where they made a historic runners-up finish against Selangor.
“Their tremendous progress in the game is a good sign for the future of badminton in Sarawak as it will motivate other players to follow in their footsteps,”
“It also reflects their potential to go further, and I hope they will be able to further hone their skills with more systematic and professional training under BAM,”he said.
Wan Lizozman also thanked BAM for placing its trust in the Sarawak shuttlers and sponsoring their participation in international tournaments.
“This will give wider and much needed exposure to both of them to be better players. SBA will continue to give them our full support so that they can reach their optimum potential,” he added.
Echoing those sentiments, SBA honorary secretary Datuk Dr Wan Khalik Wan Muhammad said the national call-up was both a milestone and a source of inspiration for the state’s badminton community.
“As honorary secretary of SBA, I am extremely proud that Genevie and Wafa have earned a national call-up by BAM and the opportunity to represent Malaysia in international junior tournaments,”
“Their selection shows that Sarawak talent can rise to the national stage and compete with distinction,”he told Sarawak Tribune when contacted last night (Jan 27).
Wan Khalik added that the achievement demonstrated that Sarawak athletes deserve recognition and opportunities at the highest level, while expressing confidence that the duo would make the most of the exposure.
