Ma Jin, a former national badminton player who won six championships at the most prestigious badminton tournaments in the world, has decided to change the course of her life and study this year at the University of Macau (UM). ‘Starting from scratch on a new path in life, I hope to combine my professional and academic knowledge to make a greater contribution to the cultural and sports industries in Macao and the country,’ says Ma.

Pursuing a Different Path in Life

This year, the Doctor of Business Administration programme and the Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) programme offered by the UM Faculty of Business Administration welcomed their fourth and third cohort of students, respectively. Together, the two programmes have admitted 60 students from well-known companies in mainland China and Macao. Ma is a new student in the EMBA programme. At the opening ceremony, Ma wore a navy blue dress with light make-up, giving a very different impression from her almighty badminton player image.

A former member of China’s national badminton team, Ma won six championships at the world’s most prestigious badminton tournaments for the team and was ranked No 1 in the world over a period of 50 weeks. Although she announced her retirement after the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, she did not give up badminton and continued to work as an assistant coach of mixed doubles on the national badminton team for some time. In recent years, she began devoting herself to promoting badminton as well as the cultural and sports industries.

Having always aspired to be a student, Ma joined UM this year, hoping to take her life to a new level. ‘Macao has developed a unique blend of Chinese and western cultures throughout its centuries-long history. In addition, UM is a comprehensive public university in Macao characterised by its internationalisation and multicultural campus, with Chinese culture as the mainstream. These are the reasons that inspired me to study at UM. I am looking forward to pursuing a new path different from my original profession and bettering myself through my studies,’ says Ma.

First Impression of the Campus

According to Ma, it was a delightful experience to see the UM campus for the first time after exiting the underwater tunnel. ‘The campus is spacious and offers beautiful views of lush greenery, with a huge library building, the Wall of Great Wisdom with the university motto “Humanity, Integrity, Propriety, Wisdom, and Sincerity”, academic buildings and laboratories crowded with students, and various sports facilities. I can feel that UM has a vibrant, youthful, and healthy campus,’ she says.

For Ma, the opportunity to study at UM has made up for a part of her school life that has been missing since she became a national athlete at the age of seven. Now she can proudly and happily say: ‘I’m a UM student.’

Motivated by the Sense of Honour

On the day of the interview, Ma, who did not have to attend class, wore a celadon print dress and travelled all the way from Zhuhai to the campus in the rain. This fearless spirit seems to come from her career of more than 20 years as an athlete.

Although she grew up practising badminton, she did not immediately rise to prominence as one might expect — it was a step-by-step process earned through perseverance and hard work, which are closely linked to the strong sense of honour that is part of her character.

In her view, this honour cannot be measured by money — it is a sense of social responsibility and commitment. But with fame comes the pressure to maintain it, and Ma once failed to win an award that the national team had won for years. After this setback, she learned from her earlier mistakes and went on to perform better in subsequent matches. ‘There are no words to describe the pride I felt when I stood on the podium and saw the national flag being raised. It was worth all the hard work,’ she says.

Contributing to the Cultural and Sports Industries

Having shed the glory of a champion, Ma has chosen to start afresh on a new path at UM. As a new student, she looks forward to her future studies. ‘UM is the best place to nurture top management talent with an international perspective, considering its educational philosophy, humanistic atmosphere, faculty members, and internationalised business education. Our programme has a top-tier faculty team. In class, the professors present many forward-looking cases and offer different perspectives for us to discuss and think about,’ says Ma.

As a promoter of sportsmanship and badminton, Ma hopes to combine the professional knowledge from her athletic background with the business knowledge and global business vision she is acquiring at UM to help diversify Macao and its economy. With the cultural and sports industries serving as an entry point, she aims to help Macao integrate into the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and contribute to the development of China as a sports power and a country with a healthy population.

In recent years, Ma began training young badminton players in the Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin. With the opportunity to study at UM, she hopes to contribute more to the development of the UM Badminton Team and the sport of badminton in Macao. She also hopes that more young people will fall in love with this sport. ‘Sports activities can gradually build our resilience and self-motivation, which can help us overcome difficulties in life, school, or work,’ she says.

Ma advises young students to combine their studies and their hobbies and then incorporate both into their careers. ‘Young people must find their own learning style through trial and error. Whether it’s in studies or sports, you must keep challenging yourself, as it’s only through constant challenges that you can ultimately achieve your goals,’ she says.

Souce: My UM ISSUE 117