Day: May 20, 2024

KUALA LUMPUR, National gymnast Muhammad Sharul Aimy Kamaru Hisam won Malaysia’s first ever medal at the 2024 Asian Men’s Artistic Gymnastics Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan today.

The 22-year-old won the bronze in the men’s vault event with 14.4666 points, behind gold medallist Carlos Yulo of the Philippines (14.883 points) and Uzbekistan’s Abdulaziz Mirvaliev (14.783 points), who won the silver.

Unfortunately, his achievement is not enough to secure him a place at the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, according to Malaysian Gymnastics Federation (MGF) vice president Francis Loh Soong Park, as Muhammad Sharul only participated in one event while the Olympic slot would be given to the winner of the men’s all-around event.

‘This is an excellent performance because this is the first time we got a medal from the Asian Championships, and he (Muhammad Sharul) landed perfectly today,’ he told Bernama.

Francis added that the MGF would focus on helping Muhammad Sharul to excel in the all-around event to
boost his chances of competing at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, the United States.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

GEORGE TOWN, After two goalless draws in as many matches, Penang FC are ready to sharpen their attack in the hope of bagging their first Super League win when they take on PDRM FC in an away game on Saturday (May 25).

Penang coach Akmal Rizal Ahmad Rakhli said although his men failed to collect all three points in last night’s home game against Terengganu FC, he is satisfied with the commitment and fighting spirit they showed.

“Not easy to play against Terengganu because they are one of the strongest teams in the league. In football, you can have more possession and create more chances but you can still fail to find the back of the net… and that’s what happened.

“So, what we need to look at ahead of our away game against PDRM is how to sharpen our attack so that we can finally end our goal drought this season,’ he told a post-match press conference at the City Stadium last night.

The Panthers drew 0-0 with Sabah (on May 12) and Terengganu yesterday to be placed eighth in the 13-team standings with two po
ints.

Akmal Rizal, however, is confident they can use the next few days to get the forwards firing on all cylinders again and to work out the right tactics for the away game against PDRM at the Selayang Municipal Council Stadium.

Meanwhile, Terengganu coach Tomislav Steinbruckner hopes his players can take their game up a notch when they entertain neighbours Kelantan Darul Naim FC on Friday (May 24).

“I expected more creativity from certain players, to be bolder in moving the ball forward. Anyway, we have to be satisfied with the result (last night).

“I feel that I may have to change several players for the match against Kelantan… not because the first 11 last night are not good enough but we need to inject some ‘freshness’ into our game by using the players on the bench,’ he said.

Terengganu are second in the standings with four points from one win and one draw. They are just two points behind leaders Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT).

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, National men’s singles shuttler Justin Hoh clinched the 2024 Slovenia Open title last night, just two months after returning to competitive action following a long injury layoff.

The 20-year-old fought back from a game down to beat Indonesian Prahdiska Bagas Shujiwo 19-21, 21-11, 21-15 in the final at the Dras Center in Maribor.

World number 179 Justin is only the second Malaysian to have won the Slovenia Open men’s singles title following Ramdan Misbun’s victory in 2013.

The Kuala Lumpur-born Justin was sidelined for eight months due to an Achilles tendon rupture in April last year.

Shortly after returning from the surgery, he suffered a right knee injury in November, causing him to miss the Badminton Asia Team Championships in Setia Alam in February, which led to his world ranking dipping from top 50 to below 200.

He finally recovered and returned to competitive action in the Toyota International Challenge in Thailand on March 26-31 before helping the national team finish third in the Th
omas Cup Finals in Chengdu, China.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria has called on Malaysian sports fans not to be doubters but believers of the national athletes’ ability to bag the country’s first-ever Olympic gold medal at the 2024 edition in Paris.

After several athletes boldly declared that they would be going for gold at the July 26-Aug 11 Paris Olympics, Mohamad Norza said he was confident they have the ingredients necessary to bring home the elusive gold medal.

Track cycling ace Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang, who won the keirin bronze in Rio 2016 and silver in Tokyo 2020, as well as shuttlers Lee Zii Jia (former All England champion) and Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (2022 men’s doubles world champions) recently announced that they are aiming to strike gold at the Paris Games.

And Mohamad Norza has backed them to stand up and be counted.

“I am happy with the preparations. I can see the momentum building, so don’t doubt our athletes’ capability. Although our contingent may be smaller,
we have badminton, track cycling and other sports capable of ending the country’s wait for an Olympic gold medal.

‘When the athletes themselves announced it (the gold medal target), we could see their sense of competitiveness… a very healthy spirit. We, as administrators, will give full support to them,’ Mohamad Norza, who is also the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) president, said at a press conference after signing a partnership with the National Heart Institute (IJN) here today.

Malaysia have yet to strike gold despite making their Olympic debut at the 1956 Melbourne Games, with the country’s best achievement being the four silvers and one bronze they won at the 2016 edition in Rio de Janeiro.

So far, 18 athletes from seven sports have qualified for the Paris Games.

Meanwhile, Mohamad Norza said the three-year partnership with IJN, worth RM149,900 per year, comprises medical screenings for 10 national and 60 national junior players under BAM and it also provides the players with medical cover
age.

The partnership, which starts today, will also see IJN appointed as the medical partner for three major international tournaments – Malaysia Open, Malaysia Masters and Malaysia Super 100 – where IJN ambulances will be on standby during the competitions.

The six-day Malaysia Masters, starting tomorrow at the Axiata Arena, will be the first tournament to receive IJN’s expertise.

Mohamad Norza signed the agreement on behalf of BAM while IJN was represented by its chief executive officer Datuk Dr Aizai Azan Abdul Rahim.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency