By Jack Hooker
Having been introduced to the sport by his father when he was nine years old, Alan Shekhtman knew he would have to try it out, but he could never have imagined being a four-time junior national champion.
He currently trains three hours a day, seven days a week: badminton has become much more than a hobby.
Now a junior, Shekhtman was drawn to badminton by its fast tempo, high jumping, hard hitting, and competitive atmosphere, he said.
“I never thought I’d be so serious about badminton,” Shekhtman said. “I just wanted to be the best kid out of the group I started with, then over time it evolved to the best in the state, new england, the country, and now, somewhere in the international rankings.”
Shekhtman started getting serious and seeing rapid results after he had begun training with his coach from Ukraine.
He practises with this coach by hitting multiple shots from everywhere on the court and doing skill drills. Shekhtman also trains in the weight room three times a week running.
“I enjoy the most how after you train and put in your best effort your game improves and you’re able to hit shots that you didn’t think you could hit before,” Shekhtman said.
According to Shekhtman, in order to be good it takes more than just skill: one needs to be strong physically and mentally. In order to prepare mentally, he has his own mental training coach so he won’t be disoriented when he gets onto the court.
“It’s as simple as breathing, meditation, and visualizing the competition before it happens so you won’t have the same nerves and jitters when you step onto the court if you’ve already seen it happen,” Shekhtman said.
His training has also helped him off of the court as well.
“The sport has given me everything i need to know,” Shekhtman said. “The hard training has taught me to be disciplined, qualities that I can use for school stuff and everyday in my life.”
His father, Igor Shekhtman, encourages badminton because of its self organization and disciplined values.
“How else you can train 20 to 30 hrs a week and get good grades in Newton [South] High School?” Shekhtman’s dad said. “It helps to develop very good physical abilities and mental strength [as well as] teaches you how to win in honest competition.”
Shekhtman started placing at junior nationals when he was 12 years old, though he started by winning only the bronze or silver medals. When he was 14 years old, he went to junior nationals for the first time, and since then has been winning in his age group every year.
In the world championship last year, Shekhtman made it to the round of 32 in doubles.
“That was a big deal because usually the U.S. doesn’t make it past the round of 64 because it is a developing country in badminton,” Shekhtman said. “It doesn’t have as much government funding as other countries do such as China and Denmark.
He also won the number one spot for the junior national team which means he is eligible to qualify for the 19 and under team competing in Thailand in October. Though Shekhtman says he could use a little more experience before he goes.
“To prepare for that I need to do a lot of training on the court and even need to play a little more international competition,” Shekhtman said. “When you go right away to the highest stage it is a whole different atmosphere and feeling because you are with other players that really live badminton so you have to get accustomed to it so it doesn’t throw you off on your first day.
Shekhtman tries to give back to the sport by coaching the South’s badminton team, which meets once a week J block in the field house.
“There are a lot more people turning up who want to play and see what its all about,” Shekhtman said. “I want to see badminton grow and for people to notice the sport.”
Shekhtman wants to do this because he believes badminton to be an underrated sport.
“If anyone gets a chance of going on youtube or watching some Olympic videos people will finally see how great of a sport it is and it has a lot to offer that people don’t realize,” he said.
Shekhtman played at a tournament this weekend at MIT with an $18,000 prize. He lost to the number one seed and No. 1 US adult. It was an adult tournament, though, and Shekhtman arrived to the quarterfinals.
“To be good it requires so much commitment and training 30 hours a week so you won’t have as much free time as others,” Shekhtman said. “But if you really love it and I think I really do, I live for it, then you only live once so I gotta try to see how good I can become.”
