# Rashid Sidek

Abdul Rashid Mohd Sidek (born 8 July 1968) is a Malaysian former badminton player and coach.

## Personal life

He is the youngest of the famous five Sidek brothers. Rashid and his siblings gained exposure to badminton from their father, Mohd Sidek, a former player turned coach. Under the guidance of their father, Rashid and the rest of his siblings were trained to be champions from an early age. Additionally, Rashid was also an alumnus of Victoria Institution from the 1981–1986 batch.

## Career

After completing his Sijil Penilaian Menengah (SPM) exam, he was injected into the Project 1988/90 squad with the aim of regaining the Thomas Cup. In the 1990 Thomas Cup, Rashid played well but Malaysia lost the finals to China 1–4.
He won the Malaysian Open title for three consecutive years in 1990, 1991, and 1992. As a result, he became known by many as “jaguh kampung” (literally, "local hero"). In the Thomas Cup final in 1992, he beat Ardy Wiranata to give Malaysia the first point in a dramatic 3-2 win over rivals Indonesia - the first championship won by Malaysia in 25 years, and the last to this day.
Over the next three years, Rashid's performance declined, but he bounced back in 1996, when he won the Asia Cup and German Open, then reached the finals of the All England before losing to Paul-Erik Hoyer Larsen from Denmark. His ranking rose to among the top three in the world. He won the bronze medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, beating the top seed, Joko Suprianto of Indonesia en route to the semi-finals, where he was beaten by Dong Jiong. However, he beat Indonesia's 1995 world champion, Heryanto Arbi, 5-15, 15-11, 15-6 in the third place playoff.
In 1997, Rashid reached the top of the world ranking. He later began to make way for new generation players like Wong Choong Hann, Yong Hock Kin and Roslin Hashim.
He retired in 2000, when aged only 32, to make way for younger and new generation players.

## Coaching

Upon his retirement, Rashid was appointed as national coach by the Badminton Association of Malaysia from 2003 until 2015. He became instrumental for the success of the new generation badminton players such as Daren Liew and Chong Wei Feng. Apart from that, he was a coach for Nusa Mahsuri, the first professional badminton club in Malaysia from 1996 to 2002. Currently, he acts as the advisor for the club which he had set up with his brother, Jalani.
He also became national para-badminton coach, serving as Cheah Liek Hou's coach who won the first ever gold medal in para-badminton at 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo.

## Achievements
### Olympic Games

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1996 | GSU Sports Arena, Atlanta, United States | Hariyanto Arbi | 5–15, 15–11, 15–6 | Bronze |

### World Cup

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1993 | Indira Gandhi Arena, New Delhi, India | Joko Suprianto | 9–15, 3–15 | Bronze |

### Asian Games

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1990 | Beijing Gymnasium, Beijing, China | Zhao Jianhua | 2–15, 5–15 | Bronze |

### Asian Championships

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1991 | Cheras Indoor Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Foo Kok Keong | 4–15, 15–11, 15–2 | Gold |
| 1992 | Cheras Indoor Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Foo Kok Keong | 15–9, 15–3 | Gold |

### Asian Cup

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1991 | Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia | Bambang Suprianto | 15–10, 15–11 | Gold |
| 1996 | Olympic Gymnasium No. 2, Seoul, South Korea | Luo Yigang | 18–14, 15–5 | Gold |

### Southeast Asian Games

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1989 | Stadium Negara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Eddy Kurniawan | 10–15, 7–15 | Bronze |
| 1991 | Camp Crame Gymnasium, Manila, Philippines | Joko Suprianto | 10–15, 9–15 | Bronze |
| 1995 | Gymnasium 3, 700th Anniversary Sport Complex, Chiang Mai, Thailand | Ardy Wiranata | 11–15, 10–15 | Bronze |

### Commonwealth Games

Men's singles
| Year | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1990 | Auckland Badminton Hall, Auckland, New Zealand | Foo Kok Keong | 15–8, 15–10 | Gold |
| 1994 | McKinnon Gym, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada | Ong Ewe Hock | 15–6, 15–4 | Gold |
Men's doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1990 | Auckland Badminton Hall, Auckland, New Zealand | Cheah Soon Kit | Razif Sidek Jalani Sidek | 8–15, 8–15 | Silver |

### IBF World Grand Prix

The World Badminton Grand Prix sanctioned by International Badminton Federation (IBF) from 1983 to 2006.
Men's singles
| Year | Tournament | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1990 | French Open | Foo Kok Keong | 11–15, 13–18 | Runner-up |
| 1990 | Malaysia Open | Foo Kok Keong | 18–17, 15–6 | Winner |
| 1990 | World Grand Prix Finals | Eddy Kurniawan | 13–18, 15–9, 2–15 | Runner-up |
| 1991 | Malaysia Open | Foo Kok Keong | 15–4, 15–5 | Winner |
| 1992 | Malaysia Open | Thomas Stuer Lauridsen | 15–5, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1992 | World Grand Prix Finals | Alan Budikusuma | 15–9, 5–15, 15–7 | Winner |
| 1994 | Malaysia Open | Joko Suprianto | 3–15, 5–15 | Runner-up |
| 1995 | Brunei Open | Jeffer Rosobin | 15–9, 15–3 | Winner |
| 1996 | Chinese Taipei Open | Dong Jiong | 11–15, 4–15 | Runner-up |
| 1996 | All England Open | Poul-Erik Høyer Larsen | 7–15, 6–15 | Runner-up |
| 1996 | German Open | Ong Ewe Hock | 15–11, 15–2 | Winner |
| 1999 | Chinese Taipei Open | Fung Permadi | 17–16, 6–15, 7–15 | Runner-up |
| 2000 | Korea Open | Peter Gade | 11–15, 3–15 | Runner-up |
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result |
| 1988 | Thailand Open | Razif Sidek | Li Yongbo Tian Bingyi | 3–15, 5–15 | Runner-up |

## Fictionalized portrayals

Rashid was portrayed by Farid Kamil, a biopic film by Adrian Teh entitle Gold is a journey story Paralympic badminton athlete Lien Hou and Rashid as coach train him for Olympic Tokyo 2020.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1994 | Black Widow Wajah Ayu | Assassin 1 | Special appearance |
| 2002 | Cinta 200 Ela | Yazid | |
| 2021 | Olympic Dream | Himself | Special appearance |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | TV channel |
| 2022 | Master in the House Malaysia | Himself/Master | TV3 |

## Honours
### Honours of Malaysia

* Malaysia :
** Herald of the Order of Loyalty to the Royal Family of Malaysia (BSD) (1989)
** Medal of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (PPN) (1991)
** Officer of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (KMN) (1993)
** Commander of the Order of the Territorial Crown (PMW) – Datuk (2021)