Elvin’s Midas touch not enough for Sarawak
KUCHING: Three- time gold medallist Elvin Yap Zhi Xian won his fourth gold in the U15 4x400m relay on the fi nal day of the 61st MSSM Inter- State Track & Field Championships at Educity Sports Complex, Johor yesterday.
And the addition of an earlier gold was still not enough for Sarawak to match the four won by Johor on Day 5 for the hosts to successfully defend the overall title.
Sarawak won only one of the seven individual events on the final day’s schedule. Andryson Makson Collin, a Primary Six student of SK Sg Lamaus, Subis, Bekenu, collected the gold in the Boy’s U12 Shot Put with his best throw of 13.85m.
Elvin Yap was caught in the middle of the previous day’s drama when he won the U15 200m hurdles in a new record (23.83sec), was initially disqualified but eventually reinstated following an appeal.
The SMK Tabuan Jaya student proved to be the athlete with the Midas touch. Two days earlier he had withstood the blistering speed of Perak’s Muhd Azeem Fahmi, winner and record breaker in the 100m ( 10.63sec) and 200m ( 21.24sec), to anchor Sarawak in 4x100m relay, winning by 0.08s in 43.18sec.
He had won his fi rst gold in the 110m hurdles on Day 2 also in a new record of 13.68sec.
Perak was agai n the hot favourite to win the 4x400m relay yesterday.
They had Ahmad Amir Aiman, winner of the 400m (51.10sec). And they roped in Azeem to be anchor as the quartet clocked the fastest time in the semi-fi nals.
The unfancied Sa rawak team, which did have 400m bronze medallist Russel Bryan Christie ( 51.44sec), also roped in 200m bronze medallist Audray MacShaqui l le and hurdles specialist Elvin as the anchor and Rozales Sigau Ladai.
The Perak foursome, however, ended up in disquali fication following a mishap in the third changeover. It was left for Elvin to take Sarawak home in a new record of 3: 26.09sec.
Sarawak added three more bronze medals on Day 5. Long Jump gold medallist Ruby Lee Jia Lu cleared 11.55m to finish third in the Girl’s U18 Triple Jump.
In the Girl’s U15 4x400m relay Rosila Libau, Rosy Libau, Nur Jasmin Abdullah and Alitia Grace Sigan (4th in the 400m in 62.42sec) fi nished in 4:11.15s behind Johor and Selangor.
The Girl’s U18 4x400m relay quartet of Chai Min Han, Catherine Amban Augustine, Sudbey Laleng Padan and Myranda Najja ( 4th in the 400m in 60.72sec) clocked 4: 06.44s to finish behind Johor and Terengganu.
Johor had earlier won the Girl’s Open 2,000m steeplechase and the Girl’s U12 4x200m relay. The hosts captured a total of 21 gold 13 silver and 13 bronze medals to retain the overall title. Sarawak ( 17- 7-18) finished as runner- up for the fourth year in a row. 2016 champions Selangor (14-7- 9) was third, Perak (9- 5-9) fourth and 2017 champions Sabah (7-18-10) fi fth.