KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysia National Cycling Federation (MNCF) is the first national sports association to set a target of winning gold at the Paris Olympics in July, aligning with the aspirations of cycling hopeful Datuk Azizulhasni Awang.
Earlier, Azizul, who is nicknamed The Pocket Rocketman, openly declared his goal of, once again, bringing home a gold medal in his fifth and final appearance at the Olympic Games.
MNCF vice-president Datuk Amarjit Singh said that there is no issue with the federation supporting Azizul’s set target, and this will be presented to the Olympic Council of Malaysia and the Youth and Sports Ministry before the overall target for the Malaysian contingent in Paris is announced.
“I think we all know Datuk Azizul’s aspirations for the Paris Olympics. Recently, he stated that everyone knows what he wants in Paris. He won a bronze medal in Rio, then a silver in Tokyo, the only thing missing is the gold medal.
“I have discussed this with the coach, John Beasley, and based on Azizul’s aspirations, MNCF is targeting a gold medal in track cycling at the Paris Olympics.
“I believe we are the first association to announce it (the target at the Olympics), but I think we are just being realistic about it. We already know about this, and I think there is no problem for us to state our desire. It is not something sudden; as I said, it is based on the aspirations of the athlete himself, Datuk Azizul.
“That’s why we openly declare that we are targeting a gold medal in the keirin event at the Paris Olympics,” said Amarjit during a Majlis Ramah Mesra Aidilfitri in Kuala Lumpur today.
The declaration of the gold medal target may change the approach to be taken by the Sports Ministry.
Previously, at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, the ministry set targets without specifying medal colours based on recommendations from the Nippon Sport Science University.
Although the Malaysian contingent successfully brought home 32 medals, including six golds, eight silvers, and 18 bronzes – exceeding the target of 27 medals – it may change considering the smaller number of athletes who will compete in Paris.
So far, a total of 10 athletes have confirmed slots to compete at the Paris Olympics, with cycling having four representatives.
Aside from Azizul, Shah Firdaus Sahrom, Nurul Izzah Izzati Asri, and Nur Aisyah Zubir will be competing in the road race event.
At the same time, Amarjit also did not rule out the possibility of Shah Firdaus springing surprises, but all focus will be given to Azizul, especially in the keirin event.
“We also do not want to forget that Shah Firdaus will be there. With his excellent condition, anything is possible.
“There may be surprises, such as additional medals. But that’s something we need to observe; in any case, our focus is primarily on the keirin event.
“I don’t think we can predict what will happen on race day. As you saw in Tokyo, there was an extraordinary manoeuvre by (Team GB’s) Jason (Kenny) that created a significant gap between other riders, and the tactics played by the riders resulted in us missing the gold medal even though we knew it was within our grasp.
“As Datuk Azizul said in his previous media session, he is here to give his best to bring home the gold medal.
“Ultimately, it will depend on the actual race day, so we hope he will be in the best condition, with no undesirable incidents during the race,” he added. – May 5, 2024