KUALA LUMPUR: Former national men's singles player Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin is proud to have finally set foot on the Olympic stage.
Although he could not realise that dream as a national player, Iskandar, 33, is now shouldering a responsibility as the men's singles coach for the Republic of Ireland at the Paris Olympics.
He played a crucial role behind the scenes, helping Irish shuttler Nhat Nguyen qualify for the Paris Olympics.
The world No. 43 player opened his campaign in Paris with a victory over three-time European Championships bronze medallist Misha Zilberman of Israel, winning 21-17, 19-21, 21-13 in his first Group P match on Sunday.
Sharing his journey in helping Nguyen qualify for Paris, Iskandar said he utilised all the experience he gained during his playing days, including being a sparring partner to former world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei.
"This is my first time as a coach bringing a player to the Olympics. Thank God, everything went well."
"At the 2016 Olympics in Rio, I assisted Chong Wei as a sparring partner.
"I am certainly happy to have successfully guided Nguyen to the Olympics, but I am still in the process of learning to become a better coach.
"I hope Nguyen can deliver his best performance at this Olympics," Iskandar told BH Sukan.
Iskandar, who was the runner-up at the 2016 Malaysia Masters, began his full-time role as a coach for the Irish badminton squad in 2022.
Before that, he was Nguyen's sparring partner.