Keglers will be put on internal rolloffs — MTBC
KUALA LUMPUR: Spending a whole year without competitions and proper goals can be demoralising for athletes.
Thus, the Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress (MTBC) is set to test the keglers with monthly internal roll-offs.
The first test would start as soon as next week as all the tournaments for this year, including Asian Championship and Malaysian Open, were halted by the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns.
With the former world championship winner Syaidatul Afifah Badrul Hamidi is back in training after suffering from pneumonia last month, the internal roll-offs will see the actions of full Malaysian squad.
MTBC secretary-general Maradona Chok said it would be interesting to see the national elite and back-up keglers compete against each other to prove their mettle since the national bowlers last played competitively at the 2019 SEA Games, last December.
“A whole year without tournament is something unprecedented, something we have never faced before.
“To keep the athletes competitive, sharp-minded and in high spirit, we need to have competitions.
“...so, I think internal roll-off is the part we are trying to simulate that part of the game,” he told Bernama.
Apart from that, he said the MTBC also hoped to organise the national championships towards the end of the year, but it depends on the National Security Council’s approval and standard operating procedures to follow in terms of physical distancing and spectators among others.
Meanwhile, Maradona said MTBC will be utilising the RM30,000 aid approved by the Youth and Sports Ministry under the 2020 Sports Concern Initiative (Inisiatif Prihatin Sukan 2020) for the portable multi-camera system for athletes’ performance analysis and live streaming.
Through the new system, the coaches will be able to monitor the athletes and identify the errors immediately during training and competitions, including at oversea tournaments.
“Previously in our Facebook lives, we only have one angle, we fix one camera at the back.
“But with the new portable system, we will be able to live stream the matches with multiple angles besides showing the scores,” he explained.