PENANG is optimistic that its track and field athletes will go the extra mile and deliver gold medals in the 21st Malaysia Games (Sukma XX1) at the Sarawak State Stadium from Aug 19 to 23.
State Youth, Sports, and Health Committee chairman Daniel Gooi Zi Sen extended his best wishes to the 26-member team when he recently received a contribution from Penang AAA president Datuk Seri Syed Muhamad Aidid Syed Murtaza at a ceremony in Komtar.
“Our target is to achieve three gold, three silver, and three bronze medals but we hope that with the extra push, our athletes can turn the silver medals into gold as well.
“Hopefully they can deliver all the six gold medals and make Penang proud. Our medal prospects come from the triple jump, men’s 10km walk and decathlon,” Gooi said after meeting Syed Aidid, an influential businessman and sports figure who has served the athletics association for more than half a century.
Syed Aidid, who handed over the contribution on behalf of Yayasan Bumiputra Pulau Pinang Bhd, expressed his hopes that the athletics team would surpass its medal haul of two gold, three silver and three bronze medals from the last Sukma in Kuala Lumpur in 2022.
He visited a training session at MBSP Sports and Recreational Complex in Jalan Betek, Bukit Mertajam, yesterday to present sports gear (running vests, shorts, and tights) from Penang State Sports Council’s allocation and a small token from himself to the athletes and offered words of encouragement to both athletes and officials.
“Do your best and bring glory to the Penang state,” Syed Aidid told the athletics team in a brief speech.
According to Penang AAA secretary V. Govindasamy, Penang, once a powerhouse in athletics, learned a hard lesson at the Perak Sukma in 2018, where it managed to secure only one silver medal and one bronze medal out of over 120 medals available.
“For the past two years, we have been monitoring our athletes’ progress and sending them out to other states for competitions every month.
“We follow strict criteria in selecting our athletes for the Sarawak Sukma. Those selected have to beat the fourth-placed results from the last Sukma. Under-18 athletes who beat the sixth-placed results of the last Sukma are also chosen to compete this year as back-ups for the next Sukma,” Govindasamy explained.
In the 2024 Sukma in Sarawak, the athletics competition will feature 47 events, offering a total of 141 medals – the second highest after aquatics which has 53 events (41 in swimming and 12 in diving).
This is followed by wushu and pencak silat, with 28 events each, taekwondo (25) and shooting (24).
Penang is banking on Sriven Tan and Wilson Quaik Zhan Han to retain the men’s 10km walk and decathlon titles respectively.
Sriven, who is trained by his father, former Asean Schools champion Tan Chee Leong, won the 10km gold in 48:15.46, ahead of Muhammad Fakhrul Razi Jailani of Melaka (48:21.08) and Sivanesh Mohan Murali of Negeri Sembilan (50:42.84) in 2022. However, in the 20km walk, Muhammad Fakhrul won in 1’40:05.94, ahead of Sriven (1’43:34.13) and Sivanesh (1’46:09.28).
Govindasamy noted that the other Penang athletes to watch out for include sprinter Muhammad Sayyid Amin Roslan, triple jumper Ng Tak Sing, high jumper and heptathlete Melissa Choong En Xuan.
If he races true to form, Muhammad Sayyid could land a podium finish in both the 200m and 400m, while Tak Sing aims for a strong showing before departing for Lima, Peru, to represent Malaysia in the World Under-20 Championships from Oct 27.
Melissa, who is currently on a break from her studies in London, has been training consistently for the past month.
The Penang athletics team:
Officials: Team manager – Nasir Khan Ibrahim Naina, Coaches – Olesya Gasparan, Tan Chee Leong, Lim Chew Peng, Mohammad Shukor Ishak, Rifat Artikov, U. Vicknasvaran R. Umpathy.
Men: Chin Sian Yuan (decathlon), Danish Haikal Danny Iskandar (hammer throw), Darell Kit Ric Yee (pole vault), Joshua Loh Yixun (10,000m, 3,000m steeplechase), Mohammad Aiman Haikal Shahrudin (10km walk, 20km walk), Muhammad Abshar Danish Mohd Azzrul (110m hurdles, 400m hurdles), Muhammad Sayyid Amin Roslan (200m, 400m), Ng Tak Sing (triple jump), Ruveshwaran Balachandran (5,000m, 10,000m), Sriven Tan (10km walk, 20km walk), Tan Chun Wei (javelin), Tan Kuan Yi (javelin), Tan Zhi Hang (100m, long jump), Wilson Quaik Zhen Han (decathlon, pole vault).
Women: Charmaine Wong Mei Hui (long jump), Ch’ing Qin Yan (high jump, pole vault), Colleen Yaep Cor Yin (800m), Goh Kai Ling (discus, hammer throw), Heng Jia Yee (5,000m, 3,000m steeplechase), Melissa Choong En Xuan (heptathlon, high jump), Lee Ying Jia (1,500m, 5,000m, 10,000m), Nur Fatini Mohd Isrulnizam (200m, 400m), Putri Ayunni Mohd Pisol (20km walk, 10km walk), Putri Yasmin Mohd Pisol (20km walk,10km walk), Siti Nurfathihah Emany Ahmad Izaham (triple jump), Tan Yen Yee (heptathlon).
Story by Kevin Vimal and K.H. Ong
Pix by Kevin Vimal and courtesy of Penang AAA