Chee Wei a doubt for Asian Games after knee op
PETALING JAYA: Gold medal prospect Lim Chee Wei (pic) has suffered a big blow ahead of the Asian Games karate competition in Indonesia in August.
Chee Wei has undergone a knee operation and a question mark hangs over his ability to recover in time to defend his men’s individual kata (non sparring) event at the Asiad.
Chee Wei, who claimed the Asian Games gold in Incheon four years ago, is recovering from the surgery and is only scheduled to return in April.
The 27-year-old Penangite did not take part in last week’s Paris Open, which was the first leg of the World Karate Federation (WKF) Karate 1 Premier League Series.
The next two legs will be in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, next month and Rotterdam, Holland, in March.
Malaysia Karate Federation (Makaf ) secretary general Vincent Chen said they were unsure about Chee Wei’s participation in the Asian Games at the moment.
“He’s not allowed to train at all at the moment,” said Vincent.
“Even if he comes back in April, it will not be possible for him to get ready for the Asian Games without any competitions.
“There will be a working committee meeting with the National Sports Institute next week and we’ll get a clearer picture of his latest condition.
“It all depends on the medical advice and whether he gets the clearance to come back for training earlier,” he said.
Makaf intend to propose three men and three women exponents for kumite for the Asian Games. It will be one man and one woman for kata.
Syakilla Salni Jefry Krisnan, who bagged a gold at the Paris Open, is certain to be in the squad.
In Incheon, Malaysia finished with two golds and two bronzes. The second gold came from Syakilla in the women’s kumite below 61kg.