National hurdler Rayzam wins gold in the Philippines Open.
Rayzam sets season best despite not having a coach
Coach-less national hurdler Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian has certainly defied the odds to bag gold in the Philippines.
The Sabahan clocked a season best 14.12 to win the men’s 110m hurdles in the Philippines Open Athletics Championships in Ilagan City Sports Complex in Isabela yesterday.
His efforts was just 0.02 seconds off the SEA Games qualifying mark, but the 31-year-old Rayzam was overjoyed with his performance.
“This is my first competition this year and I came very close to surpassing the qualifying mark,” said Rayzam.
“The gold has given me the confidence that I can beat the mark in my next competition.”
After he stopped training under coach Raymie Bakar last year, his training programme is now drawn up by German coach Jan Klaus Erasmus May, who is based in Leipzig, via e-mail.
He has been getting May’s help since he went to Germany for a short training stint in 2011.
Rayzam, who now goes to Leipzig every year, will be competing in two meets within three days.
He will feature in the Singapore Open Track and Field Championships on March 29 and two days later he will take part in the first Malaysian Open Grand Prix at the National Sports Council (NSC) Training Track in Bukit Jalil on March 31.
Rayzam, who holds the national record of 13.67 which he set at the Kurpfalz Gala meet in Weinheim, Germany in 2017, added that he has no problem with the hectic schedule.
“I’m confident I will be able to beat the qualifying mark either in Singapore or at the Malaysian GP.
“Hopefully I face some strong challengers in the two meets as it can push me to clock better times,” added Rayzam, who has featured in five SEA Games.
He made a golden debut in Thailand in 2007.
He bagged silvers in Indonesia (2011), Myanmar (2013) and Singapore (2015) before netting another gold in KL 2017.