Nosedive – Malaysian divers not even second best in Asia anymore
MALAYSIA can no longer brag about being the No. 2 diving nation in Asia.
Giants China reaffirmed their status as the undisputable No. 1 – not only in the region but the world after sweeping all the 10 gold medals at stake in the Indonesia Asian Games. They also took six silvers.
Sadly, Malaysia, who had played bridesmaid to China for the last eight years in the Asiad, could only finish joint-third with North Korea with one silver and three bronzes.
South Korea emerged as the second best nation in the continent after claiming two silvers and three bronzes.
At the last Asiad in Incheon ini 2014, Malaysia bagged two sil lvers and three bronzes.
Malaysia finished second to o China at the 2010 Guangzho ou Games when the team powered by Yeoh Ken Nee and Bryan Nickson Lomas collected four silvers and five bronzes for their best-ever achievement at the Asiad.
This time, the men divers were a letdown.
If not for Chew Yiwei’s sensational performance that won him bronze in the 3m springboard individual, the men would have ended the GGames without a medal. Ooi Tze Liang (pic) was the biggestb flop as he finished wwithout a medal for the first timme in his third Asiad. Luckily, the women’s team came to the rescue although they arrived in Jakarta with a weakened side. World champion Cheong Jun Hoong did not travel with the team as she was down with a knee injury while Pandelela sustained a back injury just days before the start of the competition.
But Nur Dhabitah Sabri, Wendy Ng Yan Yee and Leong Mun Yee stepped up in their absence as the women’s team showed they had adequate depth.
Dhabitah won three medals to show her readiness to play a leading role in the future.
“It was tough to compete in four events in my second Asiad. It was tiring but I enjoyed it. I felt the pressure, but it fired me up to perform better because this is an opportunity to prove my worth,” said Dhabitah.
“This showed we have depth in the team. The back-up divers can also deliver.”