Rolling for a repeat
National team aim to emulate 2001 feat
LET's party like it’s 2001! The national bowling team are seeking to emulate the perfect start they enjoyed 16 years ago as they bid to sweep both the men and women’s singles gold when the competition rolls off at the Sunway Mega Lanes in Subang Jaya today.
At the 2001 KL Games, bowling was held at the Penang Megalanes in Prai and Ben Heng and Shalin Zulkifli came out tops in the men and women’s singles to give Malaysia a dream start.
The Malaysians went on to rule the Games with an impressive haul of seven golds, four silvers and five bronzes.
Shalin was the star of that team, contributing four of the seven golds.
She is the biggest winner in the Games, having won 17 golds in seven editions.
Fast forward to present, the 39-year-old Shalin is set to come full circle as she makes her eighth Games appearance.
The veteran was quick to stress the importance of the team hitting the ground running.
“It’s still fresh in my mind ... the day Ben and I won on the opening day of the competition in Penang,” recalled Shalin.
“We built on the strong momentum and rode the wave of confidence until the end to equal our seven-gold haul in Brunei (in 1999).
“It’s always important to start a competition as strongly as possible. That always help set the team in the right mood and get things cracking.
“Hopefully we’re able to do the same this time.”
The presence of the 2001 side is still very much alive in the current team.
Besides Shalin, Alex Liew is also in the current men’s squad, while Holloway Cheah is still the head coach.
Ben and Gerald Samuel are now assistants to Holloway in the coaching set-up.
At the Singapore Games two years ago, Malaysia won the men’s singles through Rafiq Ismail while Esther Cheah claimed a “consolation bronze” after being promoted to third spot when three Singaporeans – Daphne Tan, Jazreel Tan and Cherie Tan – made it a 1-2-3 sweep.