NAGOYA: OVER the last few years, elite athletes have increasingly turned to something very fundamental to improve their chances of medalling at the biggest events. Thanks to the increasing involvement of sports scientists in elite sport, there's now a better understanding of what a good night's sleep can do to performance.
Alas, the Asian Games organisers didn't get the memo. Sadly. A host of players struggled with the relentless wall-to-wall schedule due to poor planning and scheduling. PV Sindhu, one of those players who has increasingly become a sleep evangelist, was highly critical of the organisation post her quarterfinal loss to Chen Yufei in the women's singles event.
At the highest level, badminton is a physically gruelling sport. It's why players need all the rest they can get. Rest, though, was something that was in short supply at the Ichinomiya Gymnasium in the city. Sindhu, for example, was forced to play three matches in under 24 hours. Her first round was on Saturday afternoon. The Round of 16 was on Saturday night with no chance to go back to the hotel for a nap in between.
By the time she had shut her eyes for a few hours on Saturday night, her alarm had already gone off for a match against Yufei on Sunday morning. “We literally slept really late and then coming back in the morning, playing two matches in a day! It’s difficult,” she said.
Sure, you can argue that the schedule remains the same for everyone, but that's missing the point. It was the same point Jonathan Christie made after the Indonesian men's singles player went down in a quarterfinal match. "I’m very disappointed with the organiser," was all he could manage. Christie, who had won gold in the team event, had a genuine chance of doing a double. Now, he feels short-changed.
This problem also affected the likes of Japan's own Kodai Naraoka, who was also asked to play two matches in a single day.