QUOTE(aressandro10 @ Jan 4 2011, 07:03 AM)
Datuk LCW and Nicol David has shown that monetary reward does not necessarily make the player's performance drop. If anything it will spur the athletes to get better as, with good enough income, they can leave their worldly problems at the gates of their training ground and just concentrate on training. Right now, some players even worried that their car will be repossessed at the parking lot when they are training...
I once saw Datuk Lee at Louis Vuitton Star Hill (I was just browsing!). He bought not one, not two, but THREE LV handbags and was speaking on the phone with someone in Hokkien asking if she wants one. One LV bag could set you back RM4k a pop and he bought THREE at one go!
I heard he also drives a Skyline.
But all this was prior to his All England win and the Olympic Silver (yes, its 2nd, but its a heckuva achievement). So you're right, monetary rewards will not have an adverse effect on performance.
However, when rewarding our footballers, some scenarios may happen: -
1) Complacency sets in after reaping the rewards
2) Easily contented with the regional success
3) Motivation solely by money
Lets not forget that Datuks Lee and Nicol are individuals who can spend all their winnings on LV bags and Skylines, whereas football is a team game that needs everyone to pull their weight. 23 men in the team means 23 different individuals, 23 different motivation and 23 different mind set.
On the flip side, not justifiably rewarding our footballers may result in them resorting to "alternative" short cuts for monetary rewards. Do we need to be reminded about 1994?
There needs to be money in the game, but the execution of it needs to be done flawlessly by the state FAs and the FAM. I'm afraid though, that this is easier said than done.