MAF president pleased with athletes’ progress ahead of Games

KUALA LUMPUR: The national track and field athletes are on the right path for medals at the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games in August.

This is based on five national records that were shattered in the first four months of this year.

The athletes who set new marks were sprinter Zaidatul Husniah Zulkifli, who shattered the 24-year-old women’s 100m record by clocking 11.45; Yap Sean Yee rewrote the women’s high jump with a height of 1.81m, Tan Huong Leong clocked 2’28:19 in the Taiwan Marathon; Jackie Wong Siew Cheer (64.55m) and Grace Wong Xiu Mei (60.99m) in the men’s and women’s hammer.

And there is more good news as youngster Luqman Hakim Ramlan did a personal best of 7.62m in the men’s long jump en route to the gold medal at the National Closed Championships in Lumut last week.

His efforts was better than the silver medal won by Vietnam’s Pham Van Lam (7.52m) in the Singapore SEA Games in 2015.

The Malaysian Athletics Federation (MAF) president Datuk Karim Ibrahim said he is pleased with the athletes’ progress.

“Breaking five national records in the first four months of the year is heartening.

“Our athletes are performing well in competitions and I believe we can do better than the five golds targeted,” said Karim.

The KL Games offers 46 gold medals in athletics.

Karim however added that there are other discipline that still needs improvement especially in the men’s triple jump.

“Mohd Hakimi (Ismail) has failed to do well in competitions since shattering the national record of 16.76m in the Singapore SEA Games to win the gold,” added Karim.

Hakimi won the gold in Lumut with a dismal 15.93m.

Karim said the athletes would compete in Europe next month in preparation for the Games.

In Singapore, Malaysia won three golds, which was their worst performance in the biennial Games.