Merdeka Stadium Best Option For National Athletics Training
KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 (Bernama) -- Merdeka Stadium has been identified as one of the best options to serve as a training centre for national athletes, said Malaysian Athletics (MA) president Datuk Seri Dr Shahidan Kassim.
He said the matter must be resolved quickly as the absence of a proper training venue could disrupt preparations for the SEA Games in Thailand this December.
'Our biggest problem is that athletes and coaches don't have a permanent training venue. That's why we are looking into several places, including Merdeka Stadium, but the rental there is quite high.
bootstrap slideshow
'So I will negotiate with the government to see if we can get a discount to conduct training there,' he said when met at the Kuala Lumpur Super Series Athletics Championships at Merdeka Stadium yesterday.
He said national athletes are currently forced to train at several temporary venues, such as the National Valuation Institute (INSPEN) and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), as there is still no official information on the reopening of the stadium at the National Sports Council (NSC), which was closed for maintenance.
Shahidan said the national athletes' performance at the biennial meet in Thailand at the end of this year would reflect Malaysia's capabilities as host of the 2027 edition, making it all the more crucial to ensure they have access to proper training facilities to achieve the best results.
He added that 85 athletes are currently under the NSC programme, comprising the Podium and back-up programmes, while another 22 athletes are under MA's development programme.
Meanwhile, he said the issue of coach appointments has been resolved, including the return of experienced coach Mohd Poad Md Kassim to the national coaching line-up.
He said six coaches had already been approved by the NSC, with Mohd Poad being the seventh addition who would conduct weekly training sessions.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
MA target better gold medal haul in Thailand
MALAYSIA Athletics (MA) are targeting to surpass the five-gold medal tally achieved in the previous edition at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand this December. MA president Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim said the association already have a specific target, which will be announced by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh ahead of the biennial Games. 'The minister will speak on behalf of all Malaysian sports, including MA... we've already discussed the target during our meetings. 'Of course, on our part we want to do better than in 2023 — if we win less, that would be unacceptable,' he told a press conference at Wisma OCM here today. For the record, the national athletics squad brought home five gold, three silver and 11 bronze medals at the 2023 SEA Games in Cambodia. The five gold medals were contributed by Muhammad Irfan Shamsuddin in the men's discus throw, Andre Anura Anuar (men's triple jump), Umar Osman (men's 400 metres), Grace Wong (women's hammer throw), and Shereen Samson Vallabouy in the women's 400m. Meanwhile, Shahidan also announced the list of athletes currently qualified under Category A, including sprint ace Muhammad Azeem Fahmi, Umar Osman, Andre Anura, Muhammad Irfan, Jonah Chang Rigan (shot put), and Wan Muhammad Fazri Wan Zahari (800m) for the men's team. He said the four female athletes are Shereen, Grace, Queenie Ting Kung Ni (discus throw), and Nani Shahirah Maryata (shot put), while both the men's and women's 4x100m relay teams are being considered as potential Category A qualifiers. 'Category A means the athlete is among the top three in the ASEAN region. Athletes in Category A will be fully funded by the National Sports Council (NSC),' he said, adding that 20 athletes currently fall under Category B. The 2025 SEA Games are scheduled to be held from December 9 to 20. In addition, Shahidan stated that the NSC have agreed to appoint six new athletics coaches, namely Andrew Lulham, Jorge Luis Alfaro Quinones, Yunaika Crawford Rojer, Muhammad Hakimi Ismail, Mohd Robani Hassan and Lo Choon Sieng.
New Straits Times
5 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Ariana optimistic national women archers will win medals at 2025 SEA Games
KUALA LUMPUR: National woman archer Ariana Nur Dania Mohamad Zairi is optimistic that her partnership with the team will bear fruit in the form of medals at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand later this year. According to Ariana, with only a few months remaining, she is confident in the capability and strength of her teammates to be at their best by the time of the biennial games. "For the 2025 SEA Games, we are targeting to win medals. I don't think it's impossible because our team is quite strong. There's not much difference between us and the other national teams," she said when met recently. She added that the effort is strongly supported by the Road To Gold (RTG) programme, which has helped improve team chemistry and training, including exposure to overseas competitions, thus enabling the team to build greater confidence when facing opponents. "So, with support from RTG and the Fast Track programme, we are getting better backing. For example, we've seen a lot of improvement in training and international tournaments. We feel we can win medals," she said. SPORTS-ARCHERY (ARIANA) 2 (LAST) KUALA LUMPUR The trio of national women archers comprises Ariana, Syaqiera Mashayikh, and Nurul Azreena Mohamad Fazil. Syaqiera also expressed confidence that their trio is highly motivated to contribute medals for the country. "For me, we want to win medals regardless of the colour. So far, for the women's team event, we haven't won any medals. "In Hanoi, Vietnam, we didn't win. So, this year in Thailand, we will try our very best. We'll work hard to win medals," she said. Indonesia are seen as one of the main contenders, in addition to having a higher team ranking than the Malaysian trio at the upcoming games. – BERNAMA
The Sun
5 hours ago
- The Sun
Ariana optimistic national women archers will win medals at 2025 Sea Games
NATIONAL woman archer Ariana Nur Dania Mohamad Zairi is optimistic that her partnership with the team will bear fruit in the form of medals at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand later this year. According to Ariana, with only a few months remaining, she is confident in the capability and strength of her teammates to be at their best by the time of the biennial games. 'For the 2025 SEA Games, we are targeting to win medals. I don't think it's impossible because our team is quite strong. There's not much difference between us and the other national teams,' she said when met recently. She added that the effort is strongly supported by the Road To Gold (RTG) programme, which has helped improve team chemistry and training, including exposure to overseas competitions, thus enabling the team to build greater confidence when facing opponents. 'So, with support from RTG and the Fast Track programme, we are getting better backing. For example, we've seen a lot of improvement in training and international tournaments. We feel we can win medals,' she said. The trio of national women archers comprises Ariana, Syaqiera Mashayikh, and Nurul Azreena Mohamad Fazil. Syaqiera also expressed confidence that their trio is highly motivated to contribute medals for the country. 'For me, we want to win medals regardless of the colour. So far, for the women's team event, we haven't won any medals. 'In Hanoi, Vietnam, we didn't win. So, this year in Thailand, we will try our very best. We'll work hard to win medals,' she said. Indonesia are seen as one of the main contenders, in addition to having a higher team ranking than the Malaysian trio at the upcoming games.
