KUALA LUMPUR: Darren Low is surprised that his daughter, Low Zi Yu, managed to win a silver medal in the girls' doubles alongside Dania Sofea Zaidi at the World Junior Championships (WJC) in Nanchang on Sunday.
Zi Yu, 14, was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism — a thyroid problem — in late May and could not focus on strenuous physical training over the past three months.
She was limited to skill training and competed at the WJC with hardly any practice for the girls' doubles.
One can hardly blame them, as both Zi Yu and 17-year-old Dania are primarily singles shuttlers who occasionally play in the mixed doubles.
Their entry into Malaysia's WJC squad was only confirmed after they upset the odds of winning the Malaysia Games (Sukma) gold in Sarawak in August.
Zi Yu also made headlines as the youngest player to ever reach a WJC final at 14 years and 53 days.
However, Dania-Zi Yu fell short in the final, losing to Japan's Ririna Hiramoto-Aya Tamaki despite their best efforts.
Darren, who was in Nanchang for the semi-finals, returned to Malaysia on Saturday.
"It was such a pleasant surprise as she had never trained with Dania for the doubles," said Darren, 51, from Segamat.
"Both are singles players, but I must say they are natural talents. They already showed potential by winning Sukma gold, but the WJC was at a different level.
"I only booked my return ticket for Saturday. Changing my flight to Sunday was too expensive, so I could only watch their final from home.
"Zi Yu was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism on May 24, and she couldn't do any physical training for three months on the doctor's advice. However, she was able to do skills training during that time.
"We also thought that doubles would not be as physically demanding as singles. Zi Yu would have a partner to support her, so we decided to let her play at the WJC.
"It would've been amazing if she'd won and become the youngest-ever champion, but I guess their opponents were more experienced."
Zi Yu's rise at such a young age isn't a coincidence, as her entire family is involved in sports.
Darren, who runs an engineering company, was a former Johor state player in both badminton and tennis.
He recalled winning a couple of Port Dickson Open men's doubles titles with former international tennis player V. Selvam in the 1990s.
Darren's son Cheng Wei, 18, initially played badminton before following his father's footsteps into tennis, while his daughter Zi Xuan, 17, is a netball player who has represented Johor at MSSM competitions.
Even Darren's wife is active in sports as a social tennis player.
"Being in a sporting family really helps, and it was only natural that Zi Yu picked up badminton at the age of three. At five, she started training under my friend Wee Hock Leng, who has been instrumental in shaping her into the player she is today," Darren added.
Darren also thanked the BA of Malaysia (BAM) for offering a special programme that allowed Zi Yu to stay with her family in Segamat but travel to spar with and train the national players on weekends and school holidays.
"Zi Yu was supposed to start in June, but she was unable to because of her health condition," said Darren.
"I even considered pulling out of the offer, but BAM gave us support and flexibility, allowing her to join the programme once she fully recovers.
"Zi Yu should be ready to join the national junior set-up when she turns 16 in 2026. For now, continuing her training at home seems like the best way to nurture her talent."