How to push Thai athletes the extra distance

The abrupt return of football star Teerasil Dangda from Spain’s La Liga has sparked a new round of debate on whether Thai athletes can cut it at the international level. The Kingdom’s top striker, Teerasil departed on a high last February, the first Thai footballer deemed good enough to play in Spain’s top-flight league. Fans and pundits hailed the achievement, but the player himself had a tough time, watching most games from the bench. And the story didn’t have a happy ending. Teerasil decided to cut short his loan stint with Almeria and return to the Thai Premier League. An overseas journey that had begun with the promise of glory
has ended in glum bitterness.
His time in La Liga proved uneventful. The striker didn’t score a single league goal for the Spanish club and spent a mere 132 minutes on the pitch. He admitted to having a problem communicating with team-mates and coaches. The language barrier and lack of playing time were, perhaps, made worse by the culture shock and homesickness felt by any traveller to a distant land.
Of course, plenty of Thai athletes have already made the grade at the international level. Those who have shone on the world stage in recent memory include snooker player James Wattana, boxer Khaosai Galaxy, golfer Thongchai Jaidee and tennis players Tamarine Tanasugarn and Paradorn Srichaphan. Like Teerasil, all have sacrificed their youth to the arduous training necessary to becoming world-class athletes, maintaining a punishing schedule to keep up with the competition.
Paradorn rose to world No 9, only to retire after a few years due to injury and the distractions of fame. Teerasil’s time in the limelight has been fleeting so far, but at age 26, time is still on his side. Many of the world’s prolific strikers have endured months on the bench. But when the opportunities finally arrived, they grasped them and convinced their coaches they were good enough to play.
There is no formula for instant and enduring sporting success, though fans and sponsors often seem to think otherwise. Athletes on a hot streak are praised to the skies, only to be quickly forgotten as soon as their form goes cold. We somehow forget that creating new heroes needs time, effort, patience and the proper facilities. Pushing our athletes to become world-class takes more than awards of cash or TV appearances when they win.
If it is to flourish, talent must be cultivated with patience, scientific training, good coaching and the right environment.
Athletes also have to avoid surrendering to temptation once they find fame. Admiration from fans is a two-edged sword that can encourage greater efforts, but also distract athletes from their quest and lead to their downfall. 
Like the fans, the business sector likes to bask in the limelight of successful athletes. The cash and attention that follow have been too much of a temptation to some of our rising stars, robbing us of potential world champions. Sponsors must be motivated by a genuine desire to help athletes advance, rather than by an ambition for personal gain which risks
the very outcome they want to be associated with – sporting success.
In the big picture, government and private sponsors must focus more on developing facilities for up-and-coming athletes rather than merely celebrating their success with fanfare and cash rewards. Better infrastructure and more qualified coaches are needed if we want to cultivate a generation of world-beaters.
Government and business must lay aside short-term self-interest and build for the future. Meanwhile we must instil a mentality of determination and commitment among our young budding talents. Success won’t come without patience, practice and discipline.