KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia Swimming Federation (MS) is pleased with the performance of the national diving team at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, where they won one silver and four bronze medals.
MS secretary-general Andy Low, however, said they were concerned about Malaysia’s reliance on the older divers to deliver the goods and hoped that younger athletes would shine at the next games.
“I am satisfied with their performance as we brought home only one silver and three bronze medals from the 2018 edition in Jakarta-Palembang. I would like to thank the former MS exco for providing the best team for us to build on.
“However, we have some concerns (about ageing athletes). We are working hard to ensure that the young athletes can progress faster,” he told Bernama after receiving a RM15,000 sponsorship from DSwim Academy for the national men’s water polo team here last night.
Andy also expressed hope that national diving queen Datuk Pandelela Rinong, 30, and Nur Dhabitah Sabri, 24, would still be able to shoulder Malaysia’s challenge at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya.
Malaysia won the silver through Nur Dhabitah-Ng Yan Yee in women’s 3-metre synchronised springboard, successfully defending their 2018 title.
The four bronze medals were contributed by Nur Dhabitah-Pandelela in women’s 10m synchronised platform, Bertrand Rhodict-Enrique Maccartney in men’s 10m synchronised platform, Pandelela in women’s 10m platform and Muhammad Syafiq Puteh-Ooi Tze Liang in men’s 3m synchronised springboard.
Asked about the national swimmers’ failure to win any medal, Andy said MS would look into the matter and take steps to rectify the situation.
“However, there were one or two events where we did well, such as Khiew Hoe Yean’s fourth placing in men’s 400m freestyle. But we admit that we need to improve,” he said. – BERNAMA
