More will qualify for Olympics: Reezal
Published on: Friday, April 16, 2021
By: Bernama
Kuala Lumpur: Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican (pic) is expecting more athletes to join the 12 national athletes who have qualified for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in July.The growing optimism stems from 23 athletes under the Road To Tokyo (RTT) 2020 programme are now hunting for slots in the Games through various qualifying processes which are still going on until June. “As an example, in badminton, Lee Zii Jia has obtained his ticket (to Olympics) which I did not include in the list of 12 athletes as the qualifying process is still open.
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“It can be said that all have the chance except one which is diving as the qualifying process has been postponed and is still waiting for the status of one more qualifying championship to be held,” he told reporters at a media conference after launching the ‘Tokyo Olympics 2020, 100 Days To Go’ ceremony at the National Sports Council (MSN) in Bukit Jalil here, Wednesday.
Touching on diving, Reezal Merican said the last qualifying event has been cancelled and it affected the chances of national divers as well as divers from all over the world including China which a diving powerhouse. “So I do not want to announce prematurely as there are more opportunities until June,” he said. To date, Malaysia has confirmed participation in diving, sailing, track cycling, archery and artistic gymnastics in the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Among the 12 athletes who have qualified are Khairul Anuar Mohamad (archery); Mohd Azizulhasni Awang and Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom (track cycling); Nur Dhabitah Sabri, Ng Yan Yee, Pandelela Rinong and Leong Mun Yee (diving).
Apart from that, Farah Ann Abdul Hadi (artistic gymnastic) and four sailing athletes - Khairulnizam Mohd Afendy, Nur Shazrin Mohd Latif, Nuraisyah Jamil and Juni Karimah Noor Jamali. Thirty two athletes comprising 17 men and 15 women represented the country at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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Meanwhile, national 100 metres record holder Khairul Hafiz Jantan has sent a letter of explanation to the Malaysian Athletics Federation (MAF) about his intention to once again be under the tutelage of coach Mohd Poad Md Kassim.
Khairul Hafiz, 22, said he also stated the reasons that influenced his decision to return to training under Mohd Poad in the letter, but declined to disclose details.
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He said ongoing discussions on the matter between him, MAF, the National Sports Council (MSN), the National Sports Institute (ISN), Mohd Poad and MAF technical director Dwayne Miller were going well.
“A letter to MAF has been sent and I do not want to issue any statement without any confirmation. What I can say is that everything is being done according to the right procedures and I hope the matter can be resolved in the near future,” he said.
Local media reported Thursday that the MAF was seeking an explanation from Khairul Hafiz and SEA Games gold medallist Muhammad Haiqal Hanafi on their intentions to return their former coach Mohd Poad, this after seven months of training under Miller from August last year.
Meanwhile, Khairul Hafiz, popularly known as ‘Speedy Jantan’, said he had already expected the issue of him moving out of Bukit Jalil would receive a lot of attention, but added that he was not too stressed about it and also hoped the matter would not be blown out of proportion.
“No, I’m not stressed. This was a decision made without being influenced by other parties and one made based on my training experiences with two different coaches,” the 2017 SEA Games 100m gold medallist said.
On Monday, Bernama reported that Khairul Hafiz and Muhammad Haiqal had each voiced their intention to return under Mohd Poad’s guidance, citing compatibility as well as it being the best move for long-term improvement for their performances.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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