Latest news with #AniqKasdan
New Straits Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Aniq hopes weightlifters can end two-decade drought at the Sea Games
KUALA LUMPUR: National weightlifter Aniq Kasdan is hoping he and his teammates can end Malaysia's long wait for a gold medal in the sport at the Thailand Sea Games in December. Malaysia has not won a gold medal at biennial games since the late Che Mohd Azrol Che Mat won back-to-back golds at Hanoi 2003 and Manila 2005. Aniq assured that Malaysian weightlifters will definitely give it their all in Bangkok. "Of course we will try our best to win gold at the Sea Games," said Aniq when met recently. "We have not won a Sea Games gold in a very long time, in fact the person who last won gold for us has passed away. "The closest we have got recently was through Aznil Bidin who won silver (men's under-61kg) at the Hanoi Sea Games. "If possible, we want to do better than that this time." Aniq set a new national record at the time en route to winning bronze in the men's under-55kg class at Hanoi 2021. He has since moved up to the under-61kg class, which has now been abolished. Aniq, who finished fourth at the Paris Olympics last year, will compete in the new under-60kg class from now on and expects the competition to be just as fierce. Aznil and Aniq did not compete at the 2023 Phnom Penh Sea Games as they were focusing on qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Malaysia won one gold at the Phnom Penh games through Nur Syazwani Radzi (women's under-64kg). "I think the countries which are usually strong at the Sea Games will continue to be just as good," said Aniq, a four-time world championship medallist. "However, with this change in weight class, there could be some new contenders. We just have to wait and see." Indonesia's Eko Yuli Irawan, who won gold in the Under-61kg division at Phnom Penh 2023 is again expected to be among the favourites. The 37-year-old is a four-time Olympic medallist. Thailand's Theerapong Silachai, who clinched silver at last year's Paris Olympics, is also expected to be among the favourites. Like Aniq, the 21-year-old is also a rising star in his country.
New Straits Times
27-05-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Aniq wary of new threats following weight class revision
KUALA LUMPUR: National weightlifter Aniq Kasdan is expecting to face a new set of rivals when he begins competing in the new under-60 kilogramme weight class later this year. Aniq previously competed in the under-61kg category and did well to finish fourth at the Paris Olympics last year. The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has, however, conducted a revision of weight classes in the sport which will come into effect on June 1. Aniq's under-61kg class has been replaced with an under-60kg category while the under-55kg class has been removed completely. "I am sure there will be new contenders in this under-60kg class because it is now the smallest weight class available," said Aniq recently. "Those who previously competed in the under-55kg class will definitely move up to under-60kg. "I can roughly guess which nations will be dangerous in this new under-60kg division. China will obviously be strong and so will North Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines. "We will have to wait until the World Championships in Norway (Oct 2-11) to get a clearer picture. By then we can start to crunch the numbers and get a clearer picture of what we need to finish in the top-four (in global competitions). "It is tricky because it appears like they (IWF) are making changes to the weight classes every two Olympic cycles, so we have to be ready to adjust." Aniq had previously competed in the under-55kg class and won silver (clean and jerk) at the 2021 World Championships and gold at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games in the division. He stepped up to the under-61kg class in 2023 and won bronze (clean and jerk) at the World Championships that year and two silvers (clean and jerk, overall) at the world meet last year. The Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in India (Aug 24-30) will be Aniq's first competition in the under-60kg class. The meet will also serve as a qualifying event for the 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
The Star
10-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Aniq smashes own national record but misses podium finish in China
KUALA LUMPUR: National weightlifter Aniq Kasdan bettered his own national record in the snatch at the Asian Championships in China but still missed out on the podium in the end. Aniq cleared 125kg and 128kg before smashing his own national record by lifting 132kg in his final attempt in the men's below 61kg class at the Asian meet held in Jiangshan.
New Straits Times
10-05-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Aniq scores new snatch national record but falls short in clean and jerk
KUALA LUMPUR: National weightlifter Aniq Kasdan bettered his own national record in the snatch at the Asian Championships in China today (May 10) but missed out on the podium in his category. Aniq cleared 125 kilogrammes and 128kg before breaking his own national record by clearing 132kg in his final snatch attempt in the men's Under-61kg class at the Asian meet. His previous record was 130kg, set at the Paris Olympics last year. The Commonwealth Games gold medallist was, however, unable to clear 163kg in three attempts in the clean and jerk, and thus was not ranked in the competition. North Korean Pak Myong Jin took gold after scoring 136kg in the snatch and 170kg in the clean and jerk for a 306kg total. China duo Wang Hao (142-163-305) and Wang Min (134-160-294) settled for second and third. Aniq's teammate Aznil Bidin suffered a similar fate in the men's under-67kg class as he cleared 160kg in the clean and jerk - just one kg lighter than his own national record - but was unable to record a score in the snatch. Vietnam's Tran Minh Tri took gold on 146-172-318 while China's Zheng Zinhao (147-170-317) came in second. South Korea's Bae Moonsu (132-174-306) completed the podium.
The Star
08-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Double lift for Aniq to snatch gold in his last 61kg event
Aniq Kasdan during his final phase of training in Rompin. PETALING JAYA: Getting picked again to be in the Road to Gold (RTG) elite programme and being the recipient of a scholarship from OCM Athletes' Education Fund will double the tonic for weightlifter Aniq Kasdan to sign out with gold from the men's 61kg event at the Asian Championships in Jiangshan, China, this weekend. The 22-year-old retained his place in the RTG programme last month and was recently awarded a scholarship worth RM10,000 annually to help him in his academic studies.
