LAST OLYMPICS FOR HUP WEI?
High jumper feels age and lack of competitions are affecting his performance
NATIONAL high jumper Lee Hup Wei hopes to seal his Tokyo Olympic berth at the Malaysian Athletics Grand Prix which starts today in Bukit Jalil.
The former Asian champion needs to, at least, equal the qualifying mark of 2.33m to make the trip to Tokyo.
However, if Hup Wei fails, he could still feature in Tokyo based on his world ranking.
Hup Wei is ranked 18th in the world and has to be in the top 32 when qualifying ends in June to earn an Olympic berth.
The Selangor-born, however, expects a tough meet in Bukit Jalil as he has not competed for a long time.
Hup Wei's last tournament was the Sydney Classics last February with a 2.16m effort.
He declared that the Tokyo Games, if he qualifies, will be his last Olympics.
“It has been 14 months since I last took part in a meet due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I am not sure whether I will be able to execute decent jumps after more than a year without a competition,” said Hup Wei, who featured in the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics.
“My focus, for now, is to qualify for the Olympics. I need to compete in as many meets as possible to achieve my goal.
“If I qualify, it will be my last Olympics. As age is catching up, I don’t think I will be around for the 2024 Paris Games.”
The 34-year is Malaysia’s best bet for a representative in athletics at the Tokyo Games.
He has had decent results over the last two years.
In 2019, he finished fourth at the Asian Championships in Doha, losing the bronze on countback after he and Japan’s Naoto Tobe recorded an identical 2.26m effort.
Hup Wei is also the first Malaysian track & field athlete to feature in a final of the World Championships.
The four-time Sea Games gold medallist achieved it in Doha in 2019, where he recorded a personal best of 2.29m in the qualifying round.
He cleared 2.27m to finish eighth in the final, comprising 16 athletes.
Hup Wei is training under Uzbekistan-born coach Aleksandar Gasparyan.
“Gasparyan has played a huge role in my development as a high jumper. Under his guidance, I cleared 2.29m at the 2019 world meet.
“I am confident he will help me produce good results this year,” he added.