Faizul wary of teen fighters in Sea Games

PENCAK silat exponent Faizul M. Nasir is wary of the threat posed by two youngsters as he seeks to win a third consecutive gold medal at the Sea Games this year.

The two are Singapore’s Hazim Yusri and Indonesia’s Hidayat Limonu, both 18.

“I’m confident I can perform at my best in the Sea Games. I made my Sea Games debut in 2015 (Singapore) and have a 100 per cent record so far,” said Faizul, who will compete in the men’s Under55kg olahrage class in the Philippines Sea Games later this year.

“I have been working on my strategy, techniques and biomechanics, among others, to correct my weaknesses and, hopefully, perform to my full potential.

“In terms of rivals, I believe all the nations will be strong, but Hazim and Hidayat will be among the contenders.

“I’ve lost to them before in closely-fought bouts, so I am confident I can get the better of them next time.”

Hazim defeated Faizul in the final of World Championships in Singapore last year.

Apart from Hazim and Hidayat, another thing on Faizul’s mind when he competes in the Philippines is the need to secure clearcut wins to avoid the possibility of biased judging.

“I don’t like to think about the judges because that will give me a ‘negative aura’. What’s important, though, is that I achieve clear and unquestionable wins,” said Faizul, the 2015 and 2017 Sea Games champion.

Faizul is looking to emulate teammate Al Jufferi Jamari’s feat of winning three consecutive gold medals (2013-2017) when he competes in a whittled down event in November.

Jufferi and Siti Rahmah Mohd Nasir, the nation’s top two pencak silat exponents, will have to sit out the Games this time as their weight categories have not been included.

Apart from Faizul, Malaysia will also be represented in the olahraga event by Khairi Adib Azhar (men’s Under-50kg), Zulfazly Zulfakar (men’s Under65kg), Nor Farah Mazlan (women’s Under-50kg) and Nurul Khaiza Kharudin (women’s Under-55kg).