Malaysia to send massive bodybuilding squad to Thailand
KUALA LUMPUR: National coach Datuk Syarul Azman Mahen Abdullah is looking forward to fielding the largest-ever Malaysian bodybuilding contingent in an international competition.
He is expecting to send 40 athletes to represent Malaysia at the Asian and Southeast Asian Championships in Bangkok on Aug 18-25.
Syarul said the squad will be composed of both old and new faces.
"This year, Thailand has decided to host both the Southeast Asian as well as the Asian Championships together," said Syarul recently.
"This is the first time Malaysia is sending this many athletes to a competition.
"When I was still competing, we would only send eight to 10 athletes at most.
"It is exciting but also challenging at the same time. It is not easy to guide 40 athletes who each have different requirements.
"From the 40 athletes, some of them are paying out of their own pockets to compete in Bangkok as they have never represented the country before.
"For those who have strong track records, they are sponsored by the National Sports Council."
Syarul, who retired from competitive bodybuilding last year after winning six World Championship titles, expects the contingent to win at least two gold medals in the Asian Championships.
"It is a bit hard to predict who will win the medals because we have a number of athletes with strong potential to do so," said Syarul.
"I am hoping at least two of them will win in their categories."
Among those expected to shine for Malaysia at the Asian meet includes, Meilura Dora Jimmy, Philomena Dexclyn Siar, Zmarul Al Adam Pulutan Abdullah and Faiz Ariffin who have all tasted success at the international level before.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Kluivert confident Indonesia will edge China in World Cup qualifier
Coach Patrick Kluivert says he is 'very confident' Indonesia will get a positive result against China on Thursday (June 5, 2025) to move closer to a historic World Cup spot. - Photo: AFP JAKARTA: Patrick Kluivert said he is "very confident" Indonesia will get a positive result against China in front of a sell-out crowd in Jakarta on Thursday (June 5) to move closer to a historic World Cup spot. Barcelona and Dutch great Kluivert saw his team thrashed 5-1 by Australia in his first game in March but they recovered to beat Bahrain 1-0 on home soil days later to leave their World Cup hopes in their own hands. "I'm very confident, and counting on my players that they will execute the things that we trained," the coach told reporters Wednesday (June 4) ahead of the clash in Jakarta. Kluivert took his squad to a training camp on the resort island of Bali to prepare for the crucial match. "The things we want to see tomorrow, I saw very clearly. We know the importance of the game," he said. Japan top Asian qualifying Group C and have already punched their ticket to North America in 2026, with Australia in a distant second in the other automatic qualifying place on 13 points. With two rounds of matches to go, Saudi Arabia are third on 10 points, one point ahead of Indonesia in fourth who have won two games and drawn three. Bahrain and China are both on six points. Teams finishing third and fourth will go into another round of qualifying -- Indonesia's most likely route to their first World Cup since gaining independence as a country in 1945. Indonesia has embarked on a recruitment drive of Dutch-born players overseen by coaches from the country's former colonial ruler to bring better results. Around 76,000 are expected to attend Thursday's match at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, with Kluivert hoping the raucous crowd can push his team to victory. "I hope that we can show them a good result," he said. FIFA ranks Indonesia 123rd in the world. - AFP
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Jun Hao reaches second round, Aaron-Wooi Yik bows out
PETALING JAYA: Men's singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao had little trouble checking into the second round of the Indonesian Open after dispatching home favourite Chico Dwi Wardoyo on Wednesday (June 4). In the opening round clash at Istora Senayan in Jakarta, Jun Hao produced a composed performance to seal a 21-13, 21-12 win in just 40 minutes. Awaiting him in the second round on Thursday (June 5) was the winner of the first-round tie between Canada's Brian Yang and fourth seed Li Shifeng of China. In the women's singles, Goh Jin Wei's campaign came to an end after she fell to Scotland's Kirsty Gilmour 20-22, 16-21 in 37 minutes. Malaysia's biggest blow of the day, however, came in the men's doubles when third seeds Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik were shown the exit in a surprise upset. Fresh from winning the Singapore Open last week, Aaron-Wooi Yik were edged out by Denmark's Rasmus Kjaer-Frederik Sogaard 13-21, 21-19, 18-21. It was sweet revenge for the Danes, who had lost to the Malaysian pair in back-to-back tournaments at the Malaysian Masters and Singapore Open over the past two weeks.
New Straits Times
4 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Kluivert confident Indonesia will edge China in World Cup qualifier
JAKARTA: Patrick Kluivert said he is "very confident" Indonesia will get a positive result against China in front of a sell-out crowd in Jakarta tomorrow to move closer to a historic World Cup spot. Barcelona and Dutch great Kluivert saw his team thrashed 5-1 by Australia in his first game in March but they recovered to beat Bahrain 1-0 on home soil days later to leave their World Cup hopes in their own hands. "I'm very confident, and counting on my players that they will execute the things that we trained," the coach told reporters today ahead of the clash in Jakarta. Kluivert took his squad to a training camp on the resort island of Bali to prepare for the crucial match. "The things we want to see tomorrow, I saw very clearly. We know the importance of the game," he said. Japan top Asian qualifying Group C and have already punched their ticket to North America in 2026, with Australia in a distant second in the other automatic qualifying place on 13 points. With two rounds of matches to go, Saudi Arabia are third on 10 points, one point ahead of Indonesia in fourth who have won two games and drawn three. Bahrain and China are both on six points. Teams finishing third and fourth will go into another round of qualifying – Indonesia's most likely route to their first World Cup since gaining independence as a country in 1945. Indonesia has embarked on a recruitment drive of Dutch-born players overseen by coaches from the country's former colonial ruler to bring better results. Around 76,000 are expected to attend tomorrow's match at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, with Kluivert hoping the raucous crowd can push his team to victory. "I hope that we can show them a good result," he said.
