Beasley vows to be more cautious

track cycling coach John Beasley says more pre-cautionary measures will be taken to ensure his riders do not get sick ahead of future competitions.

Azizulhasni Awang was down with viral infection during his campaign at the World Track Championships in the Netherlands where he failed to make an impact in the keirin and sprint events.

It is learnt that Azizulhasni took vitamins and rested to overcome the infection but his efforts were in vain.

“I cannot ascertain whether he caught the infection at the airport, during his flight or due to the cold weather. I hope we will learn from this experience and approach things better in the future,” said Beasley.

“I hope Azizulhasni will return to his best when we go back to Kuala Lumpur to prepare for the Commonwealth Games.

“Although we only have less than a month before we head to the Gold Coast, I am confident Azizulhashi will be able to regain his form,” said the coach.

Beasley added: “Our campaign in the Netherlands has ended and we cannot do anything about it now. What we can do is to learn from the experiences to bounce back in upcoming meets.”

Meanwhile, Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin revealed that he had asked a reluctant Azizulhasni Awang to disclose the “real reason” behind his failure to defend his keirin title at the World Championships.

Khairy said Azizulhasni did not want to reveal the illness he was carrying during the competition.

“I know he doesn’t want to give excuses but I asked him to say what was actually the problem,” said Khairy.

“He had a viral infection and this was confirmed by our support services team there (in Netherlands). In such a condition you cannot really expect him to give 100 per cent.

“Racing in ill condition is another experience for him but I am confident he will bounce back with strong performances at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and the Indonesia Asian G a m e s .”