Coach hopes Azreen can mentally cope
THE Olympics can either make or break a young and inexperienced athlete, and coach M. Balamurugan hopes his prized sprinter Azreen Nabila Alias will not suffer from stage fright when she competes in Tokyo.
And she has to handle things on her own in Tokyo as Balamurugan will not be travelling for the Olympics.
Balamurugan, however, hopes to help Azreen in all aspects before she heads for Tokyo.
The 21-year-old Azreen, who received a last-minute Olympic wild card, will compete in the women’s 100m. She leaves on July 25.
Balamurugan is working closely with a National Sports Institute (NSI) psychologist to prepare
Azreen accordingly.
He is worried as the Olympics will be Azreen’s first competition since the 2019 Sea Games in the Philippines, where she was part of the 4x100m bronze-medal quartet.
The coach had to change Azreen’s training programme as nobody expected her to qualify for the Olympics. Before earning the wild card, she was preparing accordingly for next year’s Vietnam Sea Games and Hangzhou Asian Games.
“Azreen is talented, but stepping into the Olympics on short notice can be disastrous for a young athlete both physically and mentally,” said Balamurugan, who has been coaching Azreen since 2018.
“So many things could go wrong. I have been helping her visualise what to expect in Tokyo.
“We have also been talking to a psychologist. I also have a list of things the team manager should do for Azreen in Tokyo.”
“I want her to gain from the experience in Tokyo. I hope it will help her become a better athlete ahead of the Sea Games and Asian Games.
“Azreen should just enjoy the Games and not be overwhelmed by big-name athletes during the race. I will keep in touch with her daily when she's in Tokyo to monitor and motivate her.”
Balamurugan said Azreen has no specific targets to achieve in Tokyo.
The Terengganu-born recorded a personal best of 11.81s for the 100m title at the 2018 Malaysia Games in Ipoh.
She then clocked 12.00s in April to beat Perak’s S. Komalam Shally and Johor's Siti Fatimah Mohamad to the 100m gold at the Malaysian Grand Prix Championships.
“I don’t want to put any pressure on her. However, she's capable of hitting below 12.00s. Anything can happen in Tokyo, and it will not be fair to blame her if she does not perform to expectations.
“Based on the schedule, she will compete straight in the first round in Tokyo. I believe she will feel nervous, but I hope it would not demoralise her.
“She is young and has years ahead of her in the sport. I do not want her to be weighed down by unreasonable expectations.
“She is in Tokyo only to gain experience ahead of the Sea Games and Asian Games.”