Coach Lee Jae-hyung (centre) with national archers (from left) Wan Mohd Khalmizam Wan Abd Aziz, Cheng Chu Sian and Muhammad Marbawi Sulaiman. Pic: HAIRUL ANUAR ABD RAHIM
THEY have been living in the shadows for so long that the Beijing Olympics could just be the place where the national archers finally break out of their shell.
But they will forever be household names if they can land a medal, of any colour, in Beijing -- a fact not lost on national coach Lee Jae-hyung.
"We have a chance to create history as no sport other than badminton has won an Olympic medal for Malaysia.
"But archery is a fickle sport and anything can happen on the given day," said Jae-hyung after announcing the national archers itinerary in the run up to Beijing in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
"The team event will be held before the individual competition and we are hoping for a good start.
"First we must qualify in the top four for the team knockout rounds so that we get a bye into the quarter-finals.
"That is the main aim," said Jae-hyung, who has been coaching the national team since 2001.
Only 12 countries qualified for the men's team event and should Malaysia earn a bye into the last eight, they only need to win two matches in the Olympic round to be assured of a medal.
As final preparation for Beijing, the archers head to Boe, France for the 3rd Archery World Cup on June 21-29 before undertaking a two-week training and sparring stint in Cheongju, South Korea with the South Korean national team until July 15.
"The Korean stint will allow our archers to focus their minds on training.
"There are too many distractions here so being away will be good for them," said Jae-Hyung.
The women's team of S. Anbarasi, Irza Hani Abu Samah and Nur Amirah Mohamad will also vie for one of five spots remaining in the Olympic individual competition in a qualifying tournament to be held immediately after the World Cup at the same venue.
NST
No comments:
Post a Comment