First Singaporean to move abroad to coach a National team in Floorball

This week we are privileged to have a short interview with Kenneth Koh the coach of Thailand National Floorball. He is among many other Singaporean that stepped out of their comfort zone to reach out and spare the love of Floorball to our neighboring countries. Kenneth has been coaching for 11.5 years. In this short interview Kenneth share with us his experience coaching Floorball in Thailand. We asked Kenneth the following question and these are his response;-

What is the one thing you think is most important for a coach?

Probably the ability to identify quickly and accurately the strengths and weakness of an individual/team and the man management skill sets to improve on or rectify these strengths or weaknesses

Could you share your experience coaching the Thailand National team with us?

It has been a very enriching and fruitful experience to say the least. Floorball in Thailand is still at an infant age so to be able to be part of this growth has been an eye opener. Whoever came up with the phrase "the start is always the most difficult and challenging" is absolutely right. We have been blessed with various positive results recently but rest assured everyone in the team and association had to work hard to get pass those numerous bumps and hurdles along the way.

How did you overcome the language barrier?

To be honest, it is still an ongoing challenge for me. The first 1-2 months I arrived in Thailand, I was without a translator and it certainly did not help the matters that not a single person in the team spoke English. We had to mutually understand each other through body language. That was pretty tough, frustrating and comically at times. Translation help came after the 1-2 months and that helped me greatly but I realized the team responded differently to the translator and me as the translator could not really express my "feelings and tones" during training and matches. I understood that I needed to speak Thai to fully connect with the teams. So after about 6 months of listening and trying to figure out what words means what in Thai, I am now able to semi communicate with them in Thai. They correct my Thai by simply laughing loudly to each other when I said something wrong before teaching me the right words to use. I believe I do the same for them for English minus the laughing loudly part.

Is there anything we could learn from the Thais?

What strikes me the most is their humility and respectfulness, especially in the younger ones. The Thais are also very determined once they have their sights on a specific target/focus. They are also very resourceful in trouble shooting situations. I think that if Singaporeans especially the younger age groups possesses similar values our potential yield will increase significantly.

What is the main take away for you coaching a foreign team?

I am extremely thankful to be able to learn and embrace a new culture and family in Thailand. I am also very grateful to be the first local born Singaporean to move abroad to coach a National team in Floorball.