Ex-Malaysian squash star tapped to coach Team Phl

Former Malaysian star Wee Wern Low will serve as head coach of the national team when it competes in various international events, including the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand next year.

Low made the announcement on social media, saying that she inked a one-year contract with the Philippine Squash Academy following her retirement last month.

"Two weeks ago, I announced my retirement from professional squash and today I am excited to share that I am officially the head coach of the Philippine national squash team," Low said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

"I didn't quite expect this to happen so soon but I am looking forward to working with the players here towards a promising future filled with hope, growth, teamwork and success."

The experience of the 33-year-old Low will be a major boost to the national squash players, popularly known as Kayod Pilipinas.

In fact, she was rated as No. 5 in the world during her peak after securing two gold medals in the 2010 and 2014 Asian Games.

In an interview with New Straits Times, Low said she wants to make an impact in the Philippines and help hone the Filipinos' skills, especially now that the sport had been included in the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.

"Coming from a humble background and growing up in a single-parent household, I didn't have many luxuries in life. Therefore, I feel a connection to the situation here, where I aim to provide the players with a better future through squash," Low, who joined PSA president Robert Bachmann in a courtesy call with Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richard "Dickie" Bachmann on Tuesday, said.

"Squash was 'the way out' for me, and I want to help these players find that path too."

Bachmann said Low hit the ground running.

"When she arrived here on 1 March, the team was already training but she was watching them," Bachmann said.