Azizul won’t break daily training routine during fasting month.
Fasting month no excuse for Azizul to break daily training routine
PETALING JAYA: Malaysian track cyclist Azizulhasni Awang is not using the holy Ramadan month as an excuse to break his daily training routine. Azizul is fasting while he continues with the off-season training under coach John Beasley in Melbourne, Australia.
Azizul, Mohd Shah Firdaus Sahrom and Mohd Fadhil Zonis are preparing for the start of the second phase of Tokyo Olympic qualification for track cycling starting later this year.
“Fasting is a requirement for a Muslim, so it’s a bigger test for me as I’m also a sportsman,” said the 2017 world champion keirin cyclist, who is hoping to deliver gold for Malaysia at the Tokyo Olympics next year.
“The training intensity is more or less the same, it’s always a challenge for me to control my hunger and thirst, letting my body get used to it.
“In Melbourne here, the sun rises and sets earlier compared to in Malaysia.
“It’s a test of mind over matter but Azizul is game to go through the motions of track training as the winter season approaches in Australia.
“We’re going into winter soon. The coldest months are in June and July,” said Azizul, who bagged a career-second Asian Games gold medal in track cycling in Indonesia last year.
“It is colder inside the velodrome because the wind stays inside the building.
“The coach is worried about our conditions but we’ve assured him that we know when is the right time to stop training – when our bodies can’t be stretched anymore.
“God willing, I’ve learnt from experience and research. I see this as a mental challenge for myself,” added the 31-year-old, who also loves to cook his own meals when he has the time.
He prepares nasi dagang and chicken schnitzel, which is a popular dish in Australia.
Azizul’s next competition is the Asian Cycling Championships in Seoul, South Korea, from Oct 17-21, which is the continental tournament for Olympic qualification.
The 2019-20 UCI Track World Series will kick off with the first leg in Minsk, Belarus, from Nov 1-3 followed by the next leg at the Sir Chris Hoy velodrome in Glasgow, Scotland (Nov 8-10).
The Hong Kong velodrome will host a World Cup leg (Nov 29-Dec 1) before the fourth leg in Cambridge Avantidrome in New Zealand (Dec 6-8).
A fifth leg will take place in the Anna Meares Velodrome in Brisbane (Dec 13-15) before the finale in Milton, Canada, (Jan 24-26).
The top cyclists will also aim to qualify for the World Track Cycling Championships in Berlin, Germany, from Feb 26-March 1 as it is the last to offer ranking points for Olympic qualification.