No place for veteran Harrif in Sea Games cycling team
KUALA LUMPUR: Veteran cyclist Harrif Saleh's hopes of competing at the Thailand Sea Games on Dec 9-20 are over.
National track endurance coach Amir Mustafa Rusli revealed that the President's Cup Series, held in February, served as the selection meet for the Sea Games, and unfortunately, Harrif did not make the cut.
He added that all cyclists were well informed of the qualification criteria, and the selected riders are now focused on delivering results at the biennial Games.
"The selection criteria were set by a panel, including national cycling programme technical director John Beasley, and athletes were picked based on their performances at the President's Cup. It was a fair process for everyone," said Amir.
"Thailand, as hosts, have only listed two track endurance events — the team pursuit and points race. These events aren't suitable for Harrif, who finished well below the other Malaysian riders in these disciplines during the President's Cup Series."
"It's good that Harrif still wants to contribute to the national team, and we appreciate his enthusiasm.
"But we also have to be fair to the other riders who have been selected. We've picked the best-performing athletes, and they are now training for the Sea Games."
The current national track endurance line-up includes Lau New Joe and Hafiq Jafri, Abdul Azim Aliyas and Yusri Shaari.
Azim won silver in the scratch race at the International Track Cup in Hong Kong in April, while the other riders made the finals of their respective events.
Track cycling is not a fixed event in the Sea Games programme.
The last time it was held, Harrif, now 37, won gold in the scratch race at the 2011 Indonesia Sea Games, while Irwandie Lakasek clinched gold at the 2017 Kuala Lumpur edition.
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