Irfan Shamsuddin brings home Malaysia’s only win from 2023 Asian Athletics Championships
Irfan Shamsuddin’s bronze is Malaysia’s only medal from the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships
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It was a gloomy day for our athletes at the Suphachalasai National Stadium in Thailand yesterday. As the sports event came to an end, Malaysia unfortunately only had one victory to claim this time around.
The bronze medal came from discus thrower, Ifran Shamsuddin after he finished with a throw of 59.63 m yesterday.
The national men’s 4×400 m, on the other hand, finished seventh and last with a time of 3:11.63. The winners were Sri Lanka, who took home gold after recording 3:01.56s.
This was followed by India (3:01.08s) who finished second, and Qatar who came in third (3:04.26s).
The 4×400 m team was led by 2023 SEA Games 400m gold medalists Umar Osman, Abdul Wafiy Roslan, Muhammad Firdaus Mohammad Zemi and Ruslem Zikry Putra Roseli. According to Wafiy, the team’s letdown was due to two factors.
One was Ruslem’s unfamiliarity with the team as it was only his second time running with the rest. The other is Firdaus’s well-being during the run. As reported by Bernama, he was unwell due to food poisoning.
“We targeted clocking 3:09.00s in the final but failed to achieve it. But we hope to improve on our time at the World University Games (in Russia) next month,” he said.
Nani Sahirah Maryata of the national women’s team had not much luck either. The national champion could only manage a distance of 14.92m, finishing off in 10th place.
“I am disappointed because I failed to improve on my national record (of 15.22m set at the Perak All Comers in April).
“However, the stiff competition today has spurred me to do better next time,” said the 22-year-old.
But while the odds were against Nani and the rest, things are looking up for national para-athlete Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli. In fact, he has successfully secured a spot at next year’s Paris Paralympic Games.
This comes after him winning silver in the men’s shot put F20 (intellectual disability) event at the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships in Paris.
His victory also makes him the first Malaysian para-athlete to qualify for the Paralympics, which occurs every four years.
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