NEWS @ SUKMA TERENGGANU 2008

Sukma Ke-14: Terengganu buru kejuaraan \treble\

2011-03-01T17:27:00.001-08:00

KUALA TERENGGANU - Kontinjen Terengganu bertekad mengulangi kejuaraan buat kali ketiga berturut-turut pada temasya Sukan Malaysia Ke-14 di Kuala Lumpur dari 2-12 Jun ini.
Mereka berhimpun sambil berikrar untuk mencapai sasaran itu pada majlis pelancaran Kontinjen Terengganu ke Sukma 2011, di Stadium Tertutup Kompleks Sukan Negeri Terengganu di Gong Badak, Kuala Terengganu semalam.

Terengganu menyasarkan 24 pingat emas daripada 20 acara yang dipertandingkan pada temasya itu nanti dengan tumpuan kepada acara kanu dan berbasikal.

Acara kanu menyasarkan 10 emas manakala berbasikal empat emas.
Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Belia dan Sukan negeri, Rozi Mamat berkata, pihaknya yakin mampu mencapai sasaran pungutan pingat emas itu berdasarkan jumlah acara yang dipertandingkan.
Malah, katanya, ia terbukti keunggulan atlet Terengganu sewaktu beraksi di luar negeri ini termasuk kejayaan pada Sukma di Melaka tahun lalu, sekali gus menjadi penanda aras kepada misi memburu kejuaraan kali ketiga berturut-turut.

"Ketika Terengganu muncul juara kali pertama pada 2008 (di Terengganu), ramai melabel kita sebagai jaguh kampung. Atlet-atlet kita telah buktikan mereka bukan jaguh kampung apabila muncul juara kali kedua di Melaka.

"Kini, dengan perubahan baru dalam penganjuran temasya Sukma, saya cukup yakin kita mampu mengulangi kejayaan serupa di Kuala Lumpur," katanya ketika menyempurnakan majlis pelancaran Kontinjen Terengganu itu semalam.

Sukma ke-14 tahun ini tampil dengan pembaharuan yang menyaksikan temasya berprestij itu dipertandingkan setiap tahun, berbanding dua kali setahun sebelum ini.

Terengganu yang disertai 246 atlet serta pegawai akan menyertai 16 daripada 20 acara sukan pada temasya ke-14 selama 10 hari itu.

Enam belas acara itu antaranya berbasikal (trek), bina badan, bola jaring, bola baling, futsal, judo, kabaddi, kanu, lawan pedang, ping pong, ragbi, tenis dan sofbol.
Mengenai acara kanu dan berbasikal yang dijadikan sandaran untuk pungutan emas, Rozi mengakui dua acara itu cukup sinonim dengan Terengganu.

Katanya, penyertaan kali ini lebih banyak didominasi atlet-atlet muda untuk menyambung kecemerlangan atlet elit sedia ada seperti Azizulhasni Awang dan Anuar Manan.

Selain kenu dan berbasikal, Terengganu yang akan diterajui ketua kontinjen, Datuk Wan Ahamad Wan Muda turut mensasarkan tiga emas untuk acara judo, lawan pedang (dua) dan masing-masing satu emas untuk ragbi, softbol, bola baling, futsal dan bola tampar.

Oleh RADHUAN HUSSAIN
sukan@utusan.com.my

Terengganu Sukma Contingent Get RM1.3 Mln Windfall

2008-06-25T00:51:00.001-07:00

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 23 (Bernama)-- The Terengganu government gave a RM1.3 million reward to the state's Malaysia Games contingent following their emerging overall champions when its 12th edition was hosted here last month.

Athletes who captured the gold received RM3,000 for each medal while for silver and bronze it was RM2,000 and RM1,000 respectively per medal. Those who broke Games' records received an additional RM1,000 per record broken.

At a special ceremony to celebrate their 61 gold, 39 silver and 47 victory at the Indoor Stadium at the Gong Badak Sports Complex here last night, the coaches and team managers of the winning teams were also duly rewarded. Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Said presented the incentives to the winners.

Woman canoeist Siti Rajiah Ali, 18, was the biggest winner taking home RM21,OOO for winning six gold medals and setting three new Games records. She also received a watch worth RM1,000 after being named as the best female state athlete at the Games.

The top male athlete was Mohd Azizul Hasni Awang, who won the 1km and 200m sprints in cycling.

Ahmad, who was elated by the state's performance in dislodging six-times champions Selangor at the prestigious Games, also announced that all the gold medal winners would be given the opportunity to compete in next year's Arafura Games in Darwin, Australia, which will be held from May 9 to 17.

-- BERNAMA

Medals Tally

2008-06-09T19:32:00.000-07:00

Kontingen-Kontingen				JUMLAH PINGAT
Terengganu D.I.	61	39	47	147
Selangor D.E.	54	47	52	153
Sarawak	52	52	42	146
Pahang D.M.	31	29	25	85
W.Persekutuan	29	38	57	124
Kedah D.A.	29	27	39	95
Perak D.R.	29	27	37	93
Pulau Pinang	27	31	47	105
Johor D.T.	27	31	40	98
Melaka	23	22	27	72
Sabah	21	20	31	72
N. Sembilan D.K.	11	21	35	67
Kelantan D.N.	8	9	18	35
Perlis I.K.	4	6	8	18
Brunei D.S.	0	2	0	2
Jumlah	406	401	505	1312

Swimmers Jian Beng, Marellyn Liew Crowned Sportsman, Sportswoman Of Sukma

2008-06-09T19:31:00.000-07:00

Swimmers Foo Jian Beng (left) of Selangor and Sabah’s Marellyn Liew (inset) were crowned Men’s and Women’s Athletes of the Games respectively after both won three gold medals each. (NST Picture)

By Jaiarajo Letchumanan

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 9 (Bernama) -- Selangor swimmer Foo Jian Beng was disappointed that he was not able to qualify for the Beijing Olympics in August despite bettering the qualifying time in the men's 100m butterfly.

But there was consolation for the 18-year-old student, who is also a part time swimming coach in Selangor, when he was named as the Sukma sportsman for breaking two national records and one championship record in the 12th edition of the biennial games which came to an end Monday.

Jian Beng's national record of 50.94s in the 100m bettered the Olympic qualifying time of 50.95s and erased former national swimmer Allan Ong's old record of 51.31s set at the 2001 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games.

However, the Sukma is not recognised as one of the qualifying meets for the Olympics and put paid to Jian Beng's hopes of donning national colours in Beijing.

"It is just too bad that Sukma is not recognized as one of the qualifying tournament for the Olympics. Of course I was disappointed with that but winning the sportsman award is some consolation for that disappointment," said Jian Beng.

Jian Beng's other gold medals came in the men's 50m butterfly where he also set a new national record with a time of 23.45s, erasing the old record of 23.49s set by Allan Ong also in 2001.

His third gold came from the men's 4x100m relay when he anchored Selangor to the gold to a new games record.

Jian Beng also won four silvers -- in the 200m individual medley, 50m backstroke, 200m freestyle and 100m butterfly.

Sabah swimmer Marellyn Liew was adjudged the best Sportswoman for setting one national record and one championship record on her way to three gold medals.

She set a new national record in the women's 100m butterfly with a new time of 1:01.82s, rewriting Luisa Los Santos' old record of 1:02.08s set at the Korat SEA Games last year.

Marellyn anchored Sabah to a new games record in the 4x100m of 3:56.51s, rewriting their own record of 4:01.69s set at the 2004 SUKMA in Negri Sembilan and also set a new games record in the 50m.

-- BERNAMA

Medals Tally

2008-06-08T19:00:00.001-07:00

Kontingen-Kontingen				JUMLAH PINGAT
Terengganu D.I.	59	39	46	144
Selangor D.E.	53	46	51	150
Sarawak	52	52	42	146
Pahang D.M.	31	27	25	83
W.Persekutuan	29	38	57	124
Kedah D.A.	29	27	38	94
Perak D.R.	29	27	37	93
Pulau Pinang	27	30	46	103
Johor D.T.	26	31	40	97
Melaka	23	22	27	72
Sabah	21	20	31	72
N. Sembilan D.K.	11	21	35	67
Kelantan D.N.	8	9	18	35
Perlis I.K.	4	6	7	17
Brunei D.S.	0	2	0	2
Jumlah	402	397	500	1299

Medals Tally

2008-06-08T18:58:00.000-07:00

2008-06-08T18:57:00.001-07:00

Terengganu Are Overall Champions

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 8 (Bernama) -- Host Terengganu emerged as the overall champion of the 12th SUKMA after opening up an inaccessible lead over second placed Selangor on the penultimate day of competitions here Sunday.

With 400 of the 404 gold medals on offer for the games decided, Terengganu lead the rest of the teams with 58 gold, 39 silver and 46 bronze, comfortably beating defending overall champion Selangor who have 53 gold, 46 silver and 51 bronze.

Tomorrow, three gold medals will be up for grabs in cycling, sepak takraw and weightlifting, but even if Selangor win all three, it will not threaten Terengganu's position.

The host who moved into the lead with 51 gold medals yesterday, collected seven gold medals today, four from pencak silat, two from boxing and one from rugby.

The chunk of the gold medals for Terengganu came from canoe (14), cycling (seven), athletics (six), pencak silat (six), taekwondo (four), swimming (three), two each from shooting, fencing, archery, judo, boxing, weightlifting and squash, while lawn bowls, equestrian, rugby and beach volleyball contributed one each.

Selangor meanwhile, came good with six gold medals today from tennis (two) and one each from badminton, cycling, lawn bowls and petanque but was not enough to overtake the host whose previous haul in Kedah was only 15.

Selangor were dominant in sports like swimming, taekwondo, gymnastics, shooting and sailing but Terengganu's prowess in winning 14 gold medals from canoe events turned out to be a major instrumental factor in the overall title.

Apart from the race for medals, the 12th SUKMA also saw four new national records and 24 new games records in swimming, two national and 12 games records in weightlifting, one national record and 15 games records in athletics and two games records in archery.

Meanwhile, Sarawak with 52 gold, 52 silver, 42 bronze are in third place while 1996 SUKMA host Pahang are fourth on 31 gold, 26 silver, 24 bronze, ahead of Federal Territories who are fifth with 29 gold, the same as Perak and Kedah who are in sixth and seventh places.

The only team that did not win a gold medal in the games was Brunei who only managed two silver medals.

-- BERNAMA

Brenda Bags Second Gold, Sets Sights On 2010 Asian Games

SECOND GOLD…Federal Territories gymnast Brenda Yap won her second gold in 12th Sukan Malaysia (SUKMA) rhythmic gymnastic individual all-round apparatus event at the Gong Badak Indoor Stadium, Kuala Terengganu. Pix: Arjasneh Ahmad

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 7 (Bernama) -- Federal Territories gymnast Brenda Yap who clinched her second gold in rhythmic gymnastics at the Gong Badak Indoor Stadium today by winning the individual all-round apparatus event, has set her sights firmly on the 2010 Asian Games.

"I am looking at representing Malaysia in the 2010 Asian Games," said Brenda who was not too happy with her overall performance despite winning the gold.

Brendas gold with 94.125 points means Federal Territories have maintained their stranglehold on the sport at SUKMA as they had also won the team event yesterday where she played a major role.

"I won the gold today but it was not a good performance from me as I wanted to give my best in this SUKMA. The ball is my favourite routine but I made mistakes in the ropes," said Brenda who made her debut at the Kedah SUKMA in 2006, winning two silvers and one bronze.

Compatriot Elaine Tan made a 1-2 for FT when she won the silver with 89.250 points and Amy Kwan of Selangor took the bronze with 87.450.

FT will be counting on Brenda, 15, to deliver four more gold medals tomorrow when she competes in the four individual apparatus finals.

Brenda came into the competition here oozing with confidence after having won four gold medals -- in the rope, hoop, ball and individual all-round -- at the SportsExcel Championships in Kuala Lumpur in early April.

Gymnastics (rhythmic) will come to a close tomorrow after the four individual apparatus finals.

-- BERNAMA

Terengganu Thrashes Perlis For Soccer Gold

KUALA TERENGGANU, Jun 9 (Bernama) -- The Terengganu soccer squad thrashed Perlis 5-1 to win the gold medal at the 12th SUKMA (Malaysia Games) held at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium of the state sports complex in Gong Badak here Sunday night.

Coached by Khalid Mohd Dahan, the squad gave a brilliant display, backed by support from its 45,000 local supporters. Terengganu began its goal fest in the 20th minute through striker Wan Mohd Aliff.

Eight minutes later, his squad mate, Mohd Ashari Samsuddin, added anoher goal and in the 44 minute, mid-fielder Ismail Faruqi hammered home the third goal from outside the penalty box.

In the second-half, Terengganu scored its fourth goal through a penalty shot by Abdul Manaf Mamat in the 52nd minute. However, Perlis replied with a goal by Azmizi Azmi in the 78th minute.

Terengganu continued to attack and got its fifth goal through Abdul Manaf Mamat, eight minutes from time. The bronze went to Kedah after it beat Penang 3-0.

-- BERNAMA

Kedah's Gold Snatched By Young FT Bowler

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 8 (Bernama) -- Federal Territories bowler Cheong Pui Yee snatched the gold medal from Kedah bowler Tengku Emanina Laily Tengku Zahri in the women's master final at the Gong Badak sports complex here Sunday.

Tengku Emanina led the competition from start until the last game when she failed to produce her best.

That was when Pui Yee took full advantage to put a strike in the last game and chalked up a grand total of 3,525 pinfalls, two pinfalls ahead of Tengku Emanina to win the gold.

Tengku Emanina who could only manage 3,253 pinfalls, took the silver while Syaidatul Afifah Badrul Hamidi of Perak settled for bronze with 2,408 pinfalls.

The 17-year-old Pui Yee said although she was confident in her game, she did not expect to win the gold medal as she only began training for SUKMA last November, after recovering from an injury in the right wrist.

"I was very nervous in the last game when Tengku (Emanina) failed to produce a strike, and this give (me) the room to overtake her," said the former national junior bowler.

Pui Yee, who trains under coach Zulkarnain Sapian, joined the national junior squad in 2006, but quit after only a year.

She claimed that the programme under the national junior squad was not suitable for her.

"Although I am not in the national team, I will continue to train hard to improve my game and win more competitions," she said.

Meanwhile, Fahmi Bahri Sulaiman won the men's master event for Johor when he recorded the grand total of 3,487 pinfalls to beat Pahang bowler Tong Juinn Chuan who knocked down 3,398 pins for silver.

Tengku Ariff Mahmood took the bronze with 3,392 pinfalls.

-- BERNAMA

Terengganu, Pahang Rule Silat

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 8 (Bernama) -- The last day of pencak silat at the 12th Sukma edition saw host Terengganu winning four gold medals at the Silat Complex in Gong Badak here Sunday.

Siti Rahmah Mohd Nasir set the ball rolling by clinching the women's Class D 60kg-65kg gold after beating Pahang's Mazatul Haniza Zakaria while Mohd Hafiz Mahari added the second from the men's Class A 45kg-50kg category by beating Mohd Faizul Nasir from Selangor.

Salahuddin Shafie later gave the host their third gold medal of the day, edging Mat Nazri Mat Khalil from Perak in the men's Class H 80kg-85kg category before Mohd Ariff Sukir swept aside the challenges of Pahang's Samiruddin Shaari to bag the fourth gold in the men's Class I 85kg-90kg category.

Terengganu exponents who made it to five finals however failed to produce a 100 per cent record when Zul Effendi Yusoff lost to Mat Sabar Nordin of Penang in the men's Class E 65kg-70kg event.

With the four collected today, the host hauled in six gold medals from silat, the same number won by Pahang, considered a powerhouse in pencak silat competitions.

Pahang who won two gold medals on June 3 and June 4, added four today with Mohd Hazwan Mahamad Hemdan leading the charge in the men's Class J 90kg-95kg gold after beating Selangor's Azrul Abdullah.

Muhamad Saiful Shafiq (men's Class G 75kg-80kg), Amir Ikram Abdul Rahim (men's Class D 60kg-65kg) and Amir Ikram Rahim (men's Class D 60kg-65kg) were the other contributors for Pahang.

Kedah were also big winners today with five gold medals, Penang picked up two while Sarawak, Perak, Kelantan and Negeri Sembilan won one each when the curtains came down on silat events today.

-- BERNAMA

Pahang Beat Terengganu For Women's Hockey Gold

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 8 (Bernama) -- Pahang were crowned women's Sukma hockey champions after beating host Terengganu 2-0 in the final at the Terengganu City Council Hockey Field in Batu Burok here Sunday.

They scored a goal in each half to seal the victory and disappointed a huge local crowd who gathered at the venue long before the start of the match.

Terengganu conceded a penalty corner in the 33rd minute and it proved costly when Siti Shahida made no mistake to beat goalkeeper Nur Nasyrah.

Terengganu pulled up their socks after conceding the lead but simply could not breach the tight Pahang defence.

Instead, Pahang scored again in the 67th minute through another penalty corner set piece, this time through Fifi Maizura.

Penang won the bronze with a 2-0 win over Johor in the third placing playoff with goals in either half through Nurul Nadia's field goal in the 14th minute and skipper Siti Noor Amarina in the 48th.

-- BERNAMA

Graceful Brenda Dances Her Way To Six Golds And Sukma History

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 8 (Bernama) -- Graceful Kuala Lumpur schoolgirl Brenda Yap etched her name in SUKMA history by making a clean sweep of all six medals at stake in rhythmic gymnastics which came to a close at the Gong Badak Indoor Stadium here Sunday.

The previous record of a five-gold-medal haul was held by Thye Chee Keat, also of FT, in the Pahang Sukma in 1996.

With her six-gold-medal haul, Brenda became the only athlete who won six gold medals in the 12th edition of the Games here and would certainly be the top most candidate for the best overall athlete.

On Friday, Brenda, 15, from the Bukit Jalil Sports School, helped FT win the team event before helping herself to the gold in the individual all-round event.

Brenda is obviously the darling at this years Sukma and a firm crowd favourite, drawing loud applauses, whenever she came on stage to perform her routines.

Undaunted by the attention and expectations, she continued to mesmerize the crowd, scoring 24.1000 points in the hoop, 23.6500 points in the ropes, 24.2250 points for ball which was her pet event and 22.9250 points in the ribbons.

While Brenda was virtually speechless with her feat, FT chief coach Elena Kholodova from Russia had nothing but praises for her charge.

"Brenda has everything in her... beauty, skills and brain.

Barring any injuries, Brenda is destined for a bright career in gymnastics, both at national and international level," she said.

"Give her one more year and she will be able to display her true potential. Her main weakness is the ribbons but she is coming along well. Brenda has been using the six-metre long ribbon instead of the normal five for the juniors," she said.

Elena said Brenda was currently Malaysia's hottest rhythmic gymnastics property who would be able to do well in Sea Games, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and even the Olympics. Incidentally, Brenda won a gold in the ribbon -- her weakest event -- to end Malaysia's 12-year gold drought and added a silver in the Pacific Alliance championships in America in March.

"Today, I was scared in the ribbon. Elaine (Koon of Selangor) was my strongest rival in this discipline. Still, winning six gold medals is beyond my dream.

"I am shocked and at the same time happy. I don't want to say that I am ready to take over from the big names Crystal Lim, Fong Seow Ting and Durratun Nashihin, but I am looking forward to donning national colours," said Brenda.

-- BERNAMA

Wei Feng Stuns Thomas Cupper Arif

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 8 (Bernama) -- National back-up shuttler Chong Wei Feng clinched the gold medal for Kedah in the penultimate day of badminton after defeating Thomas Cupper Mohd Arif Abdul Latif in the men's singles final event of the 12th SUKMA at the Kemaman MPK Hall here Sunday.

The 21-year-old cruised to a comfortable win of 21-17, 21-11 over Negri Sembilan's Arif who just returned from the Thomas Cup final in Jakarta last month.

Wei Feng's most memorable win this year was during the India Open in Hyderabad in April, when he dumped world No. 4 and All-England champion Chen Jin of China out of the tournament in the second round. However, the 19-year-old Arif said he did not play well today and that Wei Feng deserved the gold medal.

"I did not play my best but I am satisfied that I managed to enter the final with a silver medal," said the youngest among the three Abdul Latif brothers.

The others are Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif and Mohd Razif Abdul Latif. Both players are in coach Rashid Sidek's Project 2010-2012 squad and still waiting for an opportunity to break through the senior squad.

The men's doubles title was won by the Perak pairs of Chow Pak Chu/Mek Hee Chun who beat Cheah Liek Hou/Chin Chuan Jue of Federal Territories (FT) 17-21, 21-11, 21-19.

Meanwhile, national second women's singles Julia Wong, of Malacca, defeated her national team-mate Lydia Cheah of Federal Territories in the women's singles final.

Julia, the world No. 27, edged past Lydia in straight sets 22-20, 21-14 to win the first gold medal for Malacca in badminton competition.

In the women's doubles event, Uber Cup pair of Ng Hui Ling/Woon Khe Wei from Selangor swept aside Amelia Alicia Anscelly/Ng Paou Leng of Sabah 17-21, 21-13, 21-19 to win the gold medal.

-- BERNAMA

What's On Today

2008-06-04T19:17:00.000-07:00

Thursday June 5, 2008

MEDALS AT STAKE: 56-56-61

n ATHLETICS (11 golds)

(Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium, Gong Badak – 5pm)

Triple jump (women), Shot putt (men), 10,000m walk (men), 5,000m (women), high jump (men), 800m (men and women), 100m (men and women), 10,000m (men), decathlon (men)

n ARCHERY (2)

(UDM Kampus, KUSZA, Gong Badak – 9am)

Olympic individual compound (men), Olympic individual recurve (men)

n SWIMMING (7)

(Batu Burok Swimming Complex – 5pm, 6.40pm)

1,500m freestyle (men), 100m backstroke (men and women), 50m freestyle (men and women), 4x100m medley (men and women)

n DIVING (4)

(Batu Burok Swimming Complex – 10.45am)

3m spring board (men), synchronise platform (men and women), 3m springboard (women)

n CANOEING (6)

(Tasik Puteri Recreational Park, Bukit Besi – 4pm)

200m K1 (men and women), 200m K2 (men and women), 200m K4 (men and women)

n CYCLING (2)

(Bandar Kuala Berang – 9am)

80km team trial (men), 50km team trial (women)

n FENCING (2)

(UDM Kampus KUSZA, Gong Badak – 5.30pm)

Team epee (men), team foil (women)

n GOLF (4)

(Tuanku Mizan Golf and Country Resort, Kuala Ibai – 8am)

Individual (men and women), team (men and women)

n PETANQUE (4)

(Arena Padu, Jalan Kelab, Dungun – 10.15am)

Doubles (men and women), triples (men and women)

n SAILING (1)

(Pantai Rhu 10, Penarik, Setiu – 10am)

Optimist (team)

n SEPAKTAKRAW (1)

(State Stadium, Batu Burok)

Inter-team (men)

n SHOOTING (8)

(Gong Kuin 2, Tok Jembal, K. Terengganu – 10am)

10m air pistol individual (men), 10m air pistol team (men), 25m rapid fire pistol individual (men), 25m rapid fire pistol team (men), 50m rifle prone individual (women), 50m rifle prone team (women), trap individual (men), trap team (men)

n TENNIS (2)

(MBKT Tennis Complex, K. Terengganu – 8.30am)

Team final (men and women)

n WEIGHTLIFTING (2)

(Kolej Multimedia Timur, Rusila – 9am, 2pm)

77kg event (men), 85kg event (men)

n DEMONSTRATION SPORT

FORMULA FUTURE (10)

(Kuala Ibai Lagoon, K. Terengganu – 3.35pm)

Slalom Class 1-5 Total Points K1-K5

News by BERNAMA

2008-06-04T19:16:00.001-07:00

Jeng Tzan Hogs Limelight With New National Mark In Discus

By Jaiarajo Letchumanan

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- Yap Jeng Tzan provided the only sparkle on the first day of track and field action at the 12th SUKMA athletics competition by smashing her own national record in women's discus at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium at the Gong Badak Sports Complex here Wednesday.

The 21-year-old Jeng Tzan, representing Negeri Sembilan, hurled the discus to a distance of 46.66m on her second attempt to erase her week old mark of 45.80m set at the Chinese Taipei International Athletics Meet.

This is the third time Jeng Tzan has broken the national mark in the space of a month as she had initially set a new record at the Negeri Sembilan Open in May by bettering the 43.94m mark set by her in the second National Women's Games in June last year.

The sturdy Jeng Tzan who hails from Bahau, an equally competent shot put thrower and who will be taking part in the event as well, said that with the discus gold in the bag, she hoped to do well in the shot put event scheduled for Saturday.

"I have noticed a marked improvement in my throws since training under Petrovic Frank of Slovakia for the past four months.

Apart from Jeng Tzan's feat, there was not much to shout about despite the presence of some national athletes although the men's 400m race did provide some excitement for the fans.

In the race which featured one half of the 4x400m quartet that won the gold medal at the Korat SEA Games last year, Mohd Zafril Mohd Zuslaini pipped R. Amran Raj to the tape by the narrowest of margins to win the gold after a neck- -to-neck race.

Zafril clocked 47.68s while Amran's time was 47.69, a mere 0.1 second slower.

In the women's 400m, Nurul Faizah Asma Mazlan gave host Terengganu their first gold medal for athletics after winning with a time of 57.50, beating Teong Sui Men of Federal Territories who clocked 57.96.

Thursday, athletics continues with 10 gold medals on offer and the highlight will certainly be both the men's and women's blue ribbon events (100m).

-- BERNAMA

Saidatul Hits The Bulls Eye For Perak

By Hilary Sebastian

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- Perak shooter Saidatul Ashikin Roslan helped her state to two precious gold when the shooting events in the 12th Sukma opened at the Gong Kuin Shooting Range in Tok Jembal near here Wednesday.

In the 50m individual Air Rifle, the 19-year-old lass shot overall 392 points to defeat 32 other contestants for the gold.

The silver and bronze were also won by Perak shooters namely Noraishah Mohd Jamil (391 points) and Nur Farah Afiqah Mohd Taufek (389).

Saidatul went on to help her teammates Nur Zaida Abdul Rashid and Nurul Husna Mohammad Raudzi to win the team gold of the same event after they fired a total of 1154 points.

Selangor picked up the silver with 1152 points while Melaka the bronze (1146 points).

-- BERNAMA

Norrusuhila Eager To Walk Into Top Bracket

By Jaiarajo Letchumanan

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- Kelantan can be proud of 16-year-old Norrusuhila Mohd Rusni who walked away with the women's 5,000m walk gold in sweltering heat at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium when the first day of athletics competitions started Wednesday.

The gold means a lot to this daughter of a farmer from Bachok.

Nurrusuhila wants to be next best woman walker in the country after China-born Yuan Yu Fang who incidentally was watching the race from the terraces.

The hot and humid conditions saw Norrusuhila clock 26:39.23 - far below her personal best of 26:18.84 she set at the Malaysian Schools Sports Council (MSSM) sports carnival in Selangor earlier this year.

The silver went to Song Gie Chee of Penang with a time of 27:16.08 and the bronze to Yap Kwee Kee of Federal Territories (27:34.20).

Now, Norrusuhila is looking for her second gold medal when she competes in the women's 10,000m walk on Friday.

This is the second SUKMA for Norrusuhila and she is determined to break "into the top bracket" in the next two years with her sights firmly set on donning national colours in the next SEA Games.

"I am still very young and learning the tricks of the trade. But it wont be long. I have improved tremendously since I enrolled at the Bukit Jalil Sports School two years ago," said Norrusuhila.

"I believe this is the right place for me to pursue my athletics career. With proper diet and proper coaching I am making good. I hope that it will not be too long before I break into the national team."

The third child in a family of seven, Norrusuhila caught the eye of the National Sports Council (NSC) who took her under their wings after coming in second in the Asean Schools Championships in Jakarta last year.

For her efforts in winning the gold Tuesday, Norrusuhila will get RM1,000 as incentive from the Kelantan Sports Council.

-- BERNAMA

Hairi, Jonathan Awarded Gold In Floor Exercise

By Jaiarajo Letchumanan

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- In a first of its nature in the 12th SUKMA, Kelantan's Hairi Zaid Saruji and Sarawak's Jonathan Chien were both awarded the gold medal for the floor exercise in the individual apparatus events for gymnastics at the Gong Badak Indoor Stadium here Wednesday.

Hairi, 19, the defending champion in the event and Jonathan, winner of the individual all-round gold Tuesday, were both awarded identical 13.925 points by the judges.

The bronze medal in the event went to Mohd Azlan Shah of Federal Territories with 13.875 points.

Though Jonathan was deemed as the early favourite, Hairi who sustained a thigh injury in the team event on Monday, put up a determined performance despite enduring much pain to complete his routine.

Hairi who quit the national team in 2003 while studying at the Bukit Jalil Sports School wants to re-launch his bid to get into the national team again after the SUKMA.

"I joined Bukit Jalil in 2001 but I was not comfortable training under a Chinese coach because I am more suited to Russian coaches as I learned my basics in gymnastics based on the Russian style," Hairi told reporters after the prize presentation.

"This win will definitely spur me on to get back into the national team. I aim to go far in my gymnastics career as much has improved since I came under the wings of a Bulgarian coach."

A fulltime gymnast now, Hairi is currently training under Bulgarian Pavel Tadorov who is attached to the Kelantan State Sports Council.

"My thigh still hurts but it never occurred to me to give up as the floor exercise, my favourite event, was the only event left for me to win gold. I did not qualify for the other events because of the injury.

"I was determined to win and I am glad that I did not let my state down. This is the first gold for Kelantan from gymnastics," added Hairi.

-- BERNAMA

Melaka's Petite See Teng Is New Darling Of Gymnastics

By Jaiarajo Letchumanan

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- The Melaka state anthem was heard loud and clear at the Gong Badak Sports Complex Indoor Stadium three times Wednesday and it was all due to 15-year-old Cheong See Teng who emerged as the new darling of gymnastics in the 12th SUKMA.

Her three gold medals in the individual apparatus events Wednesday took her tally to five golds for her best ever haul since making her SUKMA debut in Negri Sembilan in 2004.

She popped onto the elite stage during the last SUKMA in Kedah two years ago, after winning two gold medals.

After winning gold in the women's team on the first day and the all-round on the second day, See Teng, who stands at only 1.43m tall and weighs a mere 35kg, added three more titles Wednesday afternoon, in the floor exercise, beam and vault to take her personal tally to five.

This led her father Cheong Ann, a painter, to say: "My daughter is much richer than me."

The Melaka State Sports Council had pledged to pay RM1,500 for each individual gold medal, which will make her RM7,500 richer.

"I did not know that she was this good in the sport. Her talent was spotted by a talent scout team which went to all the schools. I am glad that she has coped well so far.

"I don't earn much as a painter but I go to every competition she competes locally. It is heavy on me but that is the least I can do for her as she is very keen on the sport," said Cheong Ann, who came with his wife to Terengganu.

The Cheong family will return to Melaka Wednesday - fully satisfied with the success of their darling daughter and knowing that their sacrifices was worth its weight in gold.

They are ready to do more for See Teng to succeed at international level.

As a parting shot, See Teng, a student at Canossa Convent at Kampung Portuguese, Melaka, had this to say: "I thank my coach, my family and my friends who have made all this possible."

Her coach is Mikhail Gulsalyuk from Uzbekistan who has been with the Melaka gymnastics team for 10 years.

-- BERNAMA

Marellyn Sets New National Record In 100m Butterfly

By Kenny Teng Khoon Hock

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- Rising star Marellyn Liew of Sabah splashed her way to a new national record in the women's 100m butterfly en route to the gold in the event at the 12th Sukma (Malaysia Games) at the Batu Burok Aquatics complex here Wednesday.

The 19-year-old Liew clocked one minute 01.82 seconds to rewrite the previous national record of 1:02.08 set by Luisa Los Santos during the Korat SEA Games last year.

Hii Siew Siew of Sarawak and Cheng Karmen of Perak took the silver and bronze respectively.

Coached by former Malaysian backstroke king, Alex Lim Keng Liat, Kota Kinabalu-born Marellyn's record-breaking effort follows her rewriting of the Games record in the women's 50m butterfly on Tuesday.

Marellyn said she did not expect to break the record here and her target was only winning the gold medal.

"I did a mistake on the final 50m but managed to correct myself," she told reporters after her feat.

Liew will enter the Singapore Open later this month which is her last chance to make it to the Beijing Olympics in August.

Beijing-bound Daniel Bego and Khoo Cai Lin also created new Games records in the men's 100m butterfly and women's 400m freestyle respectively.

Daniel, 17, from Sarawak, swam his heart out to win the gold in a time of 55.27 seconds to rewrite the previous record of 56.24s set by Anthony Ang during the 1996 Sukma in Kuantan.

The silver and bronze were won by Selangor's Foo Jian Beng and Brian Derrick Lim of Sarawak respectively.

Daniel will be competing in August Beijing Olympic in the men's 100m and 200m butterfly and also the 200m freestyle.

Cai Lin, 19, from Selangor, won the 400m freestyle in 4:18.94s to erase the previous record held by Negeri Sembilan's Lew Yih Wey. Chan Kah Yan of the Federal Territories (FT) and Cheng Karmen of Perak took the silver and bronze respectively.

In the women's 200m breaststroke, Carmen Ooi, who won the Individual medley Tuesday, added another gold medal for hosts Terengganu today after she won the event in 2:43.90s ahead of Selangor's Raja Azlina Izzah and Sarawak's Erika Kong, who settled for silver and bronze.

-- BERNAMA

Curiosity Did Not Kill Cat But Pays Golden Dividends For Zulkifli

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- Going by the old adage, curiosity might have killed the cat.

In archer Mohd Zulkifli Tahil's case, it bagged golden dividends.

His victory at the 90 metre Recurve event of the 12th SUKMA archery competition at the Universiti Darul Iman has re-launched his archery career in style.

It has also erased the 20-year-old's memory of having suffered a career-threatening shoulder injury at Sukma 2006 in Kedah.

Mohd Zulkifli, a full-time archer from Labuan, has now set his sights firmly on qualifying for the Olympics, one day. It has been a long, winding road for the young man, since the days he first became interested in archery while at home in Kampung Merinding, Labuan.

It was all due to a millionaire, Captain James Anggang, who set up a private archery range on a plot of land, next to Mohd Zulkifli's home.

"I was watching the people there shoot arrows daily. I became interested and went over there often.

"One day, Captain James asked if I wanted to try out archery, and I said 'yes' and have not looked back," said Mohd Zulkifli.

He became part of the national junior team until he was told to take a rest due to his shoulder injury two years ago.

Even bigger than his SUKMA gold is his dream of one day representing Malaysia at the Olympic Games.

-- BERNAMA

Zaira Breaks Her Own National Records

MARANG, June 4 (Bernama) -- Zaira Zakaria, the national women's weightlifter who is representing Kedah, re-wrote three national records in the below-48kg category at the 12th Malaysian Sports (SUKMA) today.

The 21-year-old broke the 'snatch' national record when she successfully lifted 72kg in her second attempt, and later, again re-wrote the national 'clean-and-jerk' record with a lift of 93kg, also in the second attempt.

Hence, Zaira who has represented Malaysia at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006, smashed the national overall record with a total lift of 165kg.

The previous national 'snatch', 'clean-and-jerk' and overall were 68kg, 86kg and 154kg, respectively, where the three records were set by Zaira during the National Open in Kuantan in July last year.

Weightlifting is one of 31 sports which offers nine gold medals for men and seven for women.

-- BERNAMA

Gomagan Wins Gold As Opponent Lands In Hospital

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 4 (Bernama) -- Kedah karate exponent Gomagan Sony Rajaa was probably the luckiest gold medal winner of the 12th SUKMA held here when he did not have to lift a finger or lose any sweat to win the men's Under 65kg Kumite gold at Wakaf Tapai, Marang near here on Tuesday.

Gomagan who was supposed to face Mohd Hussaimie Hussein of Sabah in the final received a walkover when the latter could not feature in the final due to an injury suffered during his semi-final encounter against Pahang's S. Kannaan.

Mohd Hussaimie dropped to the mat just minutes into his bout as Kannaan landed an illegal kick or in karate terms known as uncontrolled kick to his rib and had to be rushed to the Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital in Kuala Terengganu for a suspected broken rib.

Kannaan who initially thought he had won the bout was later disqualified.

Technical delegate for the 12th SUKMA karate competitions Clement Soo said that since Mohd Hussaimie was unable to fight in the final, Gomagan received a walkover and was awarded the gold medal.

Meanwhile, the result of an x-ray revealed that Mohd Hussaimie's injury was not as bad as initially thought and that brought about a big relief to his father Hussein Moin who was together with his son at the hospital.

"Thank God, there was no broken rib as feared earlier. The rib is badly bruised and swollen by the impact," Hussein told Bernama when contacted.

Apart from the men's Kumite Below 65kg, Karate offered three more gold medals through the men's Kumite Below 80kg, women's Kumite Below 60kg and Kumite Below 70kg.

In the men's Below 70kg, Melaka's R. Jayaraj stopped Brunei's Mohd Nabil Malik in his tracks to take the gold while the women's Below 60kg gold went to Chin Fang Yin of Penang who beat G. Nagashangkari of Federal Territories.

Despite the defeat Mohd Nabil can still walk tall in the Brunei contingent as it was the first medal of the Games for the oil rich Sultanate.

-- BERNAMA

Sukma: Marellyn idam jejak ke Olimpik

2008-06-04T19:14:00.000-07:00

Oleh Lukman Salleh, Harris Rajahdin dan Hamid Salleh

Sasar catatan bawah 1:01.43s pada medan kelayakan terakhir di Terbuka Singapura, esok

MARELLYN Liew memanaskan badan dalam usaha layak ke Sukan Olimpik dengan kuakan bertenaga untuk merampas kembali rekod kebangsaan miliknya dalam acara 100 meter kuak kupu-kupu pada hari kelima acara renang di Kompleks Renang , Batu Burok, semalam.

Perenang Sabah itu yang kehilangan hak berbangga itu kepada Luisa Los Santos yang melakukan 1 minit 02.08 saat di Sukan Sea Korat, mencecah blok penamat dengan 1:01.82s untuk meraih emas diikuti Hii Siew Siew dari Sarawak yang tiba tiga saat di belakang, 1:04.82s. Cheng Karmen dari Perak di tempat ketiga dengan 1:05.08s.

Marellyn, 19, yang melakukan 1:01.98s pada ujian masa selepas Terbuka Malaysia bulan lalu tetapi tidak diiktiraf sebagai rekod kini akan mensasarkan kepada usaha mencecah di bawah 1:01.43s pada kejohanan kelayakan terakhir Olimpik, Terbuka Singapura, esok.

"Saya akan bertolak ke Singapura esok (hari ini) dalam usaha terakhir untuk layak ke Olimpik. Ia adalah peluang terakhir saya untuk melayakkan diri. Saya akan berusaha melakukan yang terbaik di sana," kata pemilik tiga emas itu.

Marellyn sebelum ini merakamkan rekod baru dalam 50m kuak kupu-kupu dan 4x100m gaya bebas.

Selain Marellyn, empat rekod Sukma dicatat semalam dalam 100m kuak kupu-kupu, 400m gaya bebas, 4x200m gaya bebas lelaki dan 4x200m gaya bebas wanita.

Perenang kebangsaan yang sudah melayakkan diri ke Olimpik, Daniel Bego tidak banyak memerah keringat memenangi emas dalam 100m kuak kupu-kupu dengan catatan baru, 55.27s.

Khoo Cai Lin yang juga sudah menempah tiket ke Beijing, mencatat 4:18.94 dalam 400m gaya bebas untuk rekod kejohanan baru dengan usahanya meleburkan rekod Malaysia 22 tahun milik Nurul Huda Abdullah, 4:17.86 tidak tercapai

Kuartet Sarawak dianggotai Ling Yeng Ching, Eric Chang, Bryan Derrick Lim dan Daniel mudah menjuarai 4x200m dengan masa baru 7:57.81 menggantikan 8:05.94 yang juga dilakukan oleh negeri itu yang ketika itu turut dianggotai Daniel pada Sukma 2002 di Sabah. Selangor meraih perak (8:08.22) manakala Wilayah Persekutuan merangkul gangsa (8:10.68).

Gandingan empat perenang Wilayah Persekutuan - Heidi Gan, Tania Lee, Chong Siew Mun dan Chan Kah Yan - merangkul emas berganti-ganti wanita dengan merakamkan 8:41.04. Selangor meraih perak dengan 8:54.67 manakala Sabah di tempat ketiga dengan 9:03.75.

Carmen Ooi yang mewakili Terengganu mencuri tumpuan apabila meraih emas renang kedua dalam sejarah tuan rumah apabila menjuarai 200m kuak kupu-kupu wanita dengan mengenepikan perenang pilihan, Raja Azlina Izzah Raja Shahrom dari Selangor. Raja Azlina yang terlepas hatrik gelaran kuak kupu-kupu selepas meraih emas 50m dan 100m terpaksa berpuas hati dengan perak (2:44.64) dan Erika Kong dari Sarawak meraih gangsa (2:46.41). Melengkapkan senarai, Kevin Yeap dari Perak yang merangkul emas dalam 400m gaya bebas.

Sukma Results

2008-06-04T19:12:00.000-07:00

Thursday June 5, 2008

n ARCHERY

Women's individual Olympic recurve: 1. Nornasreeni Abdul Manap (Ked), 2. Noor Ain Mohamad Yunus (Mal), 3. Noor Aziera Taip (Swk).

Women's individual Olympic compound: 1. Saritha Cham Nong (Prk), 2. Nurhidayah Latif (Pah), 3. Roshaida Hayati Mohd (Ter).

n ATHLETICS

Men

400m: 1. Mohd Zafril Mohd Zuslaini (Pah) 47.68, 2. Amran Raj (Prk) 47.69, 3. Nordye Enik (Sab) 48.56.

Long Jump: 1. Jen Chan Goh (Sel) 7.22m, 2. Muhd Hakimi Ismail (Prk) 7.11, 3. Ahmad Firdaus (Ked) 7.07

Hammer: 1. Jackie Wong Siew Cheer (Swk) 42.47m, 2. Abdul Halim Yatim (Sel) 40.65, 3. Ha How Hiong (Swk) 39.16.

Women

5,000m walk: 1. Norrusuhila Mohd Rusni (Kel) 26:39.23, 2. Song Gie Chee (Pen) 27:16.08, 3. Yap Kwee Kee (FT) 27:34.20.

400m: 1. Nurul Faizah Asma Mazlan (Ter) 57.50, 2. Teong Sui Men (FT) 57.96, 3. Norohida Badawai (Swk).

High Jump: 1. Norliyana Kamaruddin (Nse) 1.74, 2. Wong Boon Syian (Joh) 1.69, 3. Wan Sutika Wan Shukri 1.60

Discus: 1. Yap Jeng Tzan (Nse) 46.66, 2. Phang Hua Mei (Swk) 36.74, 3. Asrenny Asik (Sab) 36.12.

n BADMINTON

Boy’s semi-finals

Kedah bt Penang 3-2: Lok Chong Chieh bt Ho Khek Mong 21-12, 21-13; Tan Aik Quan lost to Lee Hock Lai 17-21, 15-21; Chong Wei Feng bt Koay Wei Sheng 21-11, 21-15; Chan Peng Soon-Raymond Koh bt Goh Jian Hao-Pang Zheng Lin 18-21, 21-15, 21-14; Lok Chong Chieh-Lim Khim Wah bt Lee Hock Lai-Loh Bok Sheang 17-21, 21-15, 21-10.

F. Territories bt Johor 3-2: Chong Li Qun bt Teo Kok Siang 21-18, 21-19; Liew Daren bt Zairul Hafiz 21-13, 21-19; Kuan Kam Chung bt Iskandar Zainuddin 18-21, 15-21; Goh Wei Shem-Goh Ying Jin lost to Tan Wee Kiong-Teo Kok Siang 12-21, 17-21; Cheah Liek Hou-Chin Chuan Jue bt Poh Chai Boon-Iskandar Zainuddin 19-21, 21-16, 21-14.

Girls’ semi-finals

Sabah bt Kedah 3-1: Sannatasah Saniru bt Ooi Swee Wern 23-21, 9-21, 21-11; Ng Paou Leng lost to Ng Sin Er16-21, 11-21; Florah Ng Sew Fong bt Chuah Sin Lui 19-21, 21-10, 21-16; Ng Paou Leng-Adriana Anscelly bt Ng Sin Zou-Ng Sin Er 21-17, 21-7).

Malacca bt F. Territories 3-1: Julia Wong bt Stephanie Shalini 22-20, 21-12; Lee Meng Yean lost to Lydia Cheah 7-21, 13-21; Tiffany Chase Curier bt Vivian Hoo 21-9, 22-20; Julia Wong-Yeow Mie Xi bt Ho Bee Ling-Stephanie Shalini 21-17, 21-16.

n BOWLING

Mixed doubles: 1. Sarawak (Aris Ardilla- Jacqueline Sijore Jenelee) 2542, 2. F. Terrorities (Radin Nur Najwa-Yusuf Abdul Raof) 2521, 3. Pahang (Jerusha Chan-Johnathan Chan) 2521.

n CANOEING

Men

500m K1: 1. Mohd Affendi Mohd Azaha (Ter), 2. Abdul Halim Heesham (Joh), 3. Hamdam Mohammad (Prk).

500m K2: 1. Md Hakimi Abdullah-Mohd Azlan Ibrahim (Ter), 2. Mohd Hanizam Ramli-Mohd Sofiyuddin Ismail (Per), 3. Md Fadhlie Othman-Abdul Halim Heesham (Joh).

500m K4: 1. Khairy Anuwar Mohd-Md Halim Salleh-Mohd Azlan Ibrahim-Md Hakimi Abdullah (Ter), 2. Faiz Zulhelmi Fadillah-Julianda Amin-Md Asirullah Kamar-Nur Syawan Kenny Yusof (FT), 3. Mohd Sofiyuddin Ismail-Mohd Sollehhuddin Ismail-Mohd Hafiz Harun-Mohd Hanizah Ramli (Per)

Women

500m K1: 1. Siti Rajiah Ali (Ter), 2. Nurfitrah Izayani Mispar (FT), 3. Juwila Tabi (Swk).

500m K2: 1. Nurul Farahim Wahad-Suzulaini Muhamad (Ter), 2. Faizah Firdaus Fauzi-Farhana Othman (Joh), 3. Ann Micheal Joseph-Juwila Tabi (Swk).

500m K4: 1. Abidah Nor Azaha-Noraisha Yahya-Norazlina Tajuddin-Siti Rajiah Ali (Ter), 2. Nurfitrah Izyani Mispar-Nurhafizah Adnan-Safieyyatun M. Zain-Shahrul Munirah Bani (FT), 3. Nor Hasmida Kamaruddin-Noraisyah Mohd Ali-Rabbiatul Adawiyah- Syarimah Ahmad (Prk).

n CYCLING

Men's 200m sprint: 1. Mohd Azizul Hasni (Ter), 2. Harnizam Basri (FT), 3. Mohd Hafiz Sufian (Sel).

Women's 200m sprint: 1. Fatehah Mustafa (Ter), 2. Ruszatulzanariah Md Yusuf (Ked), 3. Nurul Norlizawati Mohd Sharif (Ked).

n EQUESTRIAN

Mixed dressage individual: 1. Md Anas Daniel Noradzman (Sel), 2. Muhammad Zulfikar Mohd (Ter), 3. Aamelia Erza Ahmad Termizi (Joh).

n FENCING

Men's epee team: 1. Terengganu, 2. Selangor, 3. N. Sembilan and F. Territories.

Women's foil team: 1. Johor, 2. Sabah, 3. Selangor and F. Territories.

n GYMNASTICS

Men

Floor exercise: 1. Johathan Chien (Swk) and Hairi Zaid Saruji (Kel) 13.925, 3. Mohd Azlan Shah (FT) 13.875.

Pommel horse: 1. Yap Kiam Bun (Sel) 13.80, 2. Jozuadi Ahmad Dzulkifli (Joh) 12.70, 3. Lim Yi Fan (Pen) 12.47.

Rings: 1. Mohd Azzam Azmi (Sel) 12.90, 2. Jonathan Chien (Swk) 12.65, 3. Jozuadi Ahmad Dzulkifli (Joh) 11.875.

High bar: 1. Shahril Johari (Ked) 13.400, 2. Saw Chao Wei (Pen) 12.400 3. Wan Md Akmal Hakim (Joh) 12.275.

Vault: 1. Jonathan Chien (Swk) 14.630, 2. Mohd Azlan Shah (FT) 14.370, 3. Jozuadi Ahmad (Joh) and Zulhawari Anuar (Ter) 14.120.

Parallel bars: 1. Mohd Azzam Azmi (Sel) 13.825, 2. Jonathan Chien (Swk) 12.700, 3. Saw Chao Wei (Pen) 12.675.

Women

Vault: 1. Cheong See Teng (Mal) 13.663, 2. Nabilah Ali (Mal) 13.450, 3. Jerelyn Loo Hwang Phing (Pen) 13.070.

Uneven bars: 1. Tracie Ang (Mal) 13.775, 2. Tan Ing Yueh (Mal) 12.472, 3. Nor Hasleen Fatihin Hasnan (Pah) 12.450.

Balance beam: 1. Cheong See Teng (Mal) 14.650, 2. Nabihah Ali (Mal) 14.575, 3. Chan Sau Wah (Sel) 14.050.

Floor exercise: 1. Farah Ann Hadi (Sel) and Cheong See Teng (Mal) 14.500, 3. Tan Ing Yueh (Mal) 13.075.

n HOCKEY

Men

Group A: F. Territories bt Terengganu 2-1.

Group B: Johor bt Sarawak 9-0.

Group C: Perak bt Brunei 5-0.

Group D: Perlis bt Pahang 3-2.

n KARATE

Men's kumite below 80kg: 1. P. Pavitern (FT), 2. Mohd Jamil Hamid (Bru), 3. K.C. Inthiran (Joh) and K. Devindran (Sel).

n SHOOTING

Men's 50m pistol individual: 1. Chia Soon Choy (Swk) 526, 2. Omar Sheriff Mohd Sheriff (Sel) 521, 3. Afiq Alias (Sel) 519.

Men's 50m pistol team: 1. Selangor 1521, 2. Perak 1511, 3. Penang 1495.

Women's 10m air rifle: 1. Saidatul Ashikin Roslan (Prk) 395, 2. Noraishah Mohd. Jamil (Mal) 391, 3. Nur Farah Afidah Mohd Taufik (Mal) 389.

Women's 10m air rifle team: 1. Perak 1154, 2. Selangor 1152, 3. Malacca 1146.

n SWIMMING

Men

400m freesyle: 1. Kevin Yap Soon Choy (Prk) 4:06.73, 2. Ling Neng Ching (Swk) 4:17.23, 3. Daniel Goh (Swk) 4:19.63.

100m butterfly: 1. Daniel Bego (Swk) 55.27, 2. Foo Jian Beng (Sel) 56.64, 3. Brian Derrick Lim (Swk) 57.37.

200m butterfly: 1. Yap See Tuan (Pah) 2:23.24, 2. Melvin Chua (FT) 2:27.72, 3. Tax Xue Jun (Swk) 2:33.83.

4x200m freestyle: 1. Sarawak 7:57.81, 2. Selangor 8:08.22, 3. F. Terrorities 8:10.68.

Women

400m freestyle: 1. Khoo Cai Lin (Sel) 4:18.94, 2. Chan Kah Yan (FT) 4:25.71, 3. Cheng Karmen (Prk) 4:33.47.

100m butterfly: 1. Marellyn Liew (Sab) 1:01.82, 2. Hii Siew Siew (Swk) 1:04.82, 3. Cheng Karmen (Prk) 1:05.06.

200m butterfly: 1. Carmen Ooi (Ter) 2:43.90, 2. Raja Azlina Izzah Raja Shahrom (Sel) 2:44.64, 3. Erika Kong Chia Chia (Swk) 2:46.41.

4x200m freestyle: 1. F. Terrorities 8:41.04, 2. Selangor 8:54.67, 3. Sabah 9:03.75.

n TABLE TENNIS

Men's team: 1. Sarawak, 2. Penang, 3. Terengganu and Kedah.

Women's team: 1. Malacca, 2. Sarawak, 3. Selangor and Kedah.

n WEIGHTLIFTING

Women's below 48kg: 1. Zaira Zakaria (Ked), 2. Nurniada Nordin (Ked), 3. Azizah Fadzil (Pen).

Women's Below 58kg: 1.Sharifah Inani Syed Anuar (Pah), 2. Nurul Ismayanti Nor Dzuan (Ked), 3. Nur Amyza Ismail (Kel).

Women's below 53kg: 1. Raihan Yusoff (Kel), 2. E. Sasheladevi (Pen), 3. Fatin Atikah Osman (Per).

n WUSHU

Men

Daoshu: 1. Ong Shi Chuan (Mal) 9.59, 2. Ryvon Lim Leng Ooi (Mal) 9.51, 3. Lau Hui Wei (Swk) 9.46.

Nandao: 1. Ho Man Hua (Mal) 9.60, 2. Loh Chun Wai (Nse) 9.34, 3. Cheot Yao Zong (Kel) 9.33.

Taijijian: 1. Jonnny Hii Tai Wei (Swk) 9.41, 2. Chan Wai Lit (Nse) 9.34, 3. Leong Teng How (Pen) 9.33.

Women

Jiansu: 1. Khaw Jing Yee (Nse) 9.32, 2. Bong Yie Ching (Swk) 9.30, 3. Phoon Eyin (Nse) 9.30.

Nandao: 1. Ee Hui Ping (Joh) 9.22, 2. Ho Jong Chan (Swk) 8.94, 3. Chai Fong Chin (Mal) 8.93.

Taijijian: 1. Fiona Tan Mei Yuen (Swk) 9.32, 2. Pang Tung Yee (Nse) 9.30, 3. Karen Tan Wen Pei (Swk) 9.15.

The Star

What's on today

2008-06-03T23:54:00.001-07:00

MEDALS AT STAKE: 67-67-74

ATHLETICS (7 golds)

(Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin – 3.30pm)

Hammer (men), high jump (women), 5,000m walk (women), long jump (men), discus (women), 400m (men and women).

ARCHERY (2)

(UDM Kampus, KUSZA, Gong Badak – 2.30pm)

Olympic individual compound (women), Olympic individual recurve (women).

AQUATICS (8)

(Batu Burok Swimming Complex – 5pm)

400m freestyle (men and women), 100m butterfly (men and women), 200m breaststroke (men and women), 4x200m freestyle (men and women).

BADMINTON (2)

(Berlian Utama Hall, Kemaman)

Team final (men and women).

BOWLING (1)

(Main Stadium, Gong Badak Sports Complex – 12.30pm)

Mixed doubles.

CANOEING (6)

(Tasik Puteri Recreational Park, Bukit Besi – 4pm)

500m K1 (men and women), 500m K2 (men and women), 500m K4 (men and women).

CYCLING (2)

(Trek Bandar Kuala Berang – 1pm)

200m sprint (men and women).

n EQUESTRIAN (2)

(Terengganu Equestrial Resort, K. Ibai – 7.30am, 4pm)

Dressage (individual), show jumping (individual).

FENCING (2)

(UDM Kampus KUSZA, Gong Badak – 5.30pm)

Team epee (men), team foil (women).

GYMNASTICS (10)

(Indoor Stadium, Gong Badak Sports Complex – 9am)

Individual apparatus (men and women).

KARATE (1)

(IKBN Wakaf Tapai, Marang – 9am)

Kumite 80kg (men).

LAWN BOWLS (2)

(Gong Badak Sports Complex – 5.15pm)

Singles (men) and triples (women).

SHOOTING (6)

(Gong Kuin 2, Tok Jembal – 10am)

10m air rifle individual and team (women), 50m free pistol individual and team (men), trap individual and team (men).

SILAT (2)

(Gerbang Sukan Negri, Gong Badak – 8.30pm)

Tempur Ganda (men and women).

PETANQUE (2)

(Arena Padu, Jalan Kelab, Dungun – 3pm)

Singles (men and women).

TABLE TENNIS (2)

(UDM Kamous, KUSZA, Gong Badak – 4.30pm)

Team final (men and women).

WEIGHTLIFTING (3)

(Kolej Multimedia Timur, Rusila – 9am)

48kg event (women), 53kg event (women), 58kg event (women).

WUSHU (7)

(SM Teknik Terengganu – 8.30am)

Qiangshu (men and women), gunshu (men and women), nangun (men and women), taijijian (men).

The Star

Terengganu slog for semis spot, Kedah and Penang also in

2008-06-03T23:53:00.001-07:00

DEFENDING champions Terengganu, Kedah and Penang were made to slog yesterday to earn their places in the semi-finals of the football semi-finals.

Terengganu survived a penalty shoot-out, much to the relief of the home fans at the Sultan Ismail Stadium in Kuala Terengganu. They outgunned Johor 5-4 after extra time failed to resolve a goalless deadlock.

Kedah and Penang scored the winning goal in extra time to send Federal Territories and Perak packing respectively.

Kedah and FT were tied at 0-0 after regulation time in the match played at the Gong Badak Sports Complex. And national player Bunyamin Umar put Kedah through to the semi-finals with a goal in the 95th minute.

Sorry mate: Penang’s Mohd Azwi Othman (left) collides into Perak’s Shahrizal Md Saad during the quarter-final match at the Gong Badak Sports Complex yesterday. Penang won 3-2.

Kedah coach Mahamad Ramlee conceded that the match could have gone either way.

“We took our chance at the crucial moment and made it count when it mattered most,” said Mahamad, whose boys will be up against Terengganu tomorrow for a place in the final.

For Kedah, they will get the chance to avenge the defeat by Terengganu in a shoot-out in the final of the last Games at the Darulaman Stadium in Alor Star.

The hero for Penang was Mohd Zafran, who scored in the 112th minute to give his side a 3-2 victory over Perak at the Gong Badak Sports Complex.

Perak had taken the lead with a goal by Abdullah Kassim in the fifth minute. But Penang bounced back to score two quick goals through Mohd Hafiz Rahman and Mohd Failee Mohd in the 41st and 42nd minutes respectively.

Perak equalised with a goal by K. Thinagaran in the 56th minute .

Perlis completed the semi-final cast with a 2-0 win over Selangor. A penalty conversion by Mohd Hairy in the 72nd minute and another goal by Mohd Shazman in the 80th minute put Perlis through to the playoff for medals. They will take on Penang tomorrow for a place in the final.

The Star

FT to lodge complaint about accomodation

2008-06-03T23:52:00.002-07:00

FEDERAL Territories will make an official complaint against the accommodation for athletes and officials at the Games Village in the UDM Kampus in Gong Badak.

Their athletics team manager, Gulam Ghani Mohd Ayoub, said yesterday that the hosts could have prepared a better place for the athletes.

“Someone has to bring up this matter,” said Gulam.

“The rooms are in a deplorable condition.

“In fact, some of the FT teams, among them the squash players, had moved out,” he said.

“On the first day, we spend three hours to sort out keys to our rooms.

“Then, there were no pillows and the mattresses were not clean. I also had to use an insect repellent spray and found 15 dead cockroaches after that.

“I will not be too wrong to say that this is the same feeling (of unhappiness) from all the other teams staying here.”

Gulam said that there were also complaints over the lack of food.

“It is important for athletes to have proper meals, rest and live in a hygienic place.

“We have reported this to our chef-de-mission and he will officially notify the organisers of our grouses.

“Hopefully, this will not happen in the next Sukma,” he said.

The Star

Penang blast into last eight, Malacca in despite loss

2008-06-03T23:52:00.001-07:00

PENANG and Malacca qualified for the men’s hockey quarter-finals in contrasting fashions at the Gong Badak Sports Complex yesterday.

Penang took over as Group C leaders after completing their fixtures with a 6-2 rout of Perlis. And they confirmed their ticket to the quarter-finals after leaders Kelantan fell to a 1-2 defeat by Pahang.

Pahang, who are currently in third spot, will join Penang in the quarter-finals if they can avoid defeat against winless Perlis today.

In Group C, Malacca booked their place in the knockout stage despite a 3-4 defeat by Perak. Malacca’s cause was aided by Selangor, who trounced Brunei 19-2.

Ten players got on the scoresheet for Selangor with Khairul Azwan and Faridzul Afiq scoring four goals each.

Selangor have completed their group fixtures and are in second place. But they are facing elimination because third-placed Perak, who only trail Selangor on goal difference, take on hapless Brunei in their final group match today.

Defending champions Federal Territories and hosts Terengganu have already qualified from Group A but the three-team Group B is still open.

Leaders Johor only need to avoid a big defeat against bottom-placed Sarawak to confirm their ticket. If Sarawak fail to overturn a six-goal deficit, then Kedah will advance from the group.

Gomagan takes gold without fighting in final bout

2008-06-03T23:50:00.000-07:00

GOMAGAN Sony Rajaa was the Kedah hero who did not have to fight in the final to take the men's kumite 65kg gold medal at the Dewan Besar Institute Kemahiran Belia Negara (IKBN) in Wakaf Tapai, Marang, yesterday.

It was first gold medal for Kedah after three days of karate competition. And the Kedah team hoisted Gomagan and paraded him in the arena after Sabah's Mohd Hussaimie Hussein conceded a walkover.

The 21-year-old Gomagan was the sole gold medal-winner for Kedah in karate when they hosted the Games in 2004 and the pressure was on him yesterday to retain the title .

Gomagan Sony Rajaa (with flag) is surrounded by friends after winning the men's kumite 65kg gold medal.

And it wasn't easy for him to get past S. Sugandan of Johor in the quarter-final and Penang's Daniel Lim in the semi-finals.

“The bout against Daniel was like a final. I led but Daniel caught up and it was touch-and-go after that,” said the national back-up squad trainee.

Mohd Hussaimie was unable to fight in the final after he was stretchered out with a rib injury in the semi-final bout against S. Kannaan of Pahang.

Kedah coach P. Thiyakarajan said: “We knew the competition would be tough because of the ruling which allows national exponents and even Asian champions to take part.

“We have no national exponents in our ranks and we are happy to meet the one-gold target.”

Penang picked up their sixth gold medal through Chin Fang Yin in the women's kumite 60kg competition.

The national exponent defeated G. Nagashangkari of the Federal Territories in the final.

The other gold medallists of the day were R. Jayaraj of Malacca (men's kumite 70kg) and the Federal Territories' V. Jayaseelan (men's kumite 80kg).

The Star

See Teng and Jonathan emerge as individual all-around winners

2008-06-03T23:49:00.002-07:00

PETITE Cheong See Teng of Malacca and Australia-based Jonathan Chien of Sarawak grabbed the girls' and boys' individual all-around titles respectively at the indoor stadium of the Gong Badak Sports Complex yesterday.

But the women's competition was marred by a Selangor protest against bias judging. Selangor felt that their gymnast, Farah Ann Abdul Hadi, was robbed of the gold medal.

The jury stood by the decision to award the gold to See Teng, who posted 53.250. Farah chalked up a 51.350 for the silver and Nor Hasleen Fatihin of Pahang took bronze on 50.700.

A petite Cheong See Teng of Malacca proudly showing off her individual all-around gymnastics gold medal.

In her Sukma debut in Negri Sembilan in 2004, See Teng made headlines as a 11-year-old – winning four gold medals in her Games debut. And at the last Games in Alor Star, she bagged two gold medals.

She has now won two in Kuala Terengganu after helping the team to win the gold medal on Monday.

“I am down for three more events and hope to improve on my previous tally,” said the 15-year-old student of the Cannosa Convent, who will compete in the vault, balance beam and floor exercise today.

Sarawak will also be hoping for a bigger medal haul from Jonathan in the individual disciplines.

The 19-year-old from Sibu emerge as the individual all-around champion with a score of 78.150. Kedah's Mohd Shahril Johari won the silver on 75.450 and Saw Chao Wei of Penang finished third on 73.800.

The Star

Sarawak duo strike it right again

2008-06-03T23:49:00.001-07:00

JACQUELINE Sijore Jenelee and Dayang Khairuniza Dhiyana are good friends who decided to team up as a pair two years ago after Sarawak's disappointing outing in the last Sukma.

Yesterday at the Diman Superbowl in the Sultan Mizal Zainal Abidin Stadium in Gong Badak, they fought until the last frame and were rewarded with the girls' doubles gold medal with a score of 2,426. They beat Perak's Nazrinnah Mohd Kamil and Nor Atteya Zainal Abidin by just three pins.

It was the second gold medal as a pair for Jacqueline and Khairuniza in less than two months after the national schools (MSSM) championships.

“It was close in all the six games against the Perak girls. I missed a spare in the last frame but fortunately Khairuniza stepped up,” said the 16-year-old Jacqueline.

Friends Sijore Jenelee and Dayang Khairuniza Dhiyana are all smiles after bagging the girls’ doubles gold medal in the Sukma bowling competition Tuesday.

“We were able to support each other in the crucial stages and that made the difference. This is my first Sukma after being the reserve in the last two editions. I am glad that we were able to end Sarawak's wait for a gold medal after four years.”

Sarawak last won gold when they were the hosts of the 2002 Games. Then, Tang Joh Six-Caroline Chien were the girls' doubles winners and Jackson Ting, who is now the coach, was a winner in the boys' singles and doubles.

After returning empty-handed from the Kedah Games, the 17-year-old Khairuniza is happy to get her act right.

“I had a poor outing at the last Sukma. In fact, I did not do well in the singles event yesterday. “I am glad that both Jacqueline and I gave better performances today,” she said yesterday.

“We hope to continue with our good showing and try to win more medals for Sarawak in the mixed doubles tomorrow.”

In the boys' doubles, Selangor nailed their first gold in the competition through Ahmad Amiruddin Ridha Allah-Xavier Ang Xian Wen with a score of 2,541.

The Star

Favourite Jack Chang an easy winner in taijiquan

2008-06-03T23:28:00.000-07:00

FOR most wushu exponents, the first outing in Sukma is a learning experience.

But 21-year-old Loh Jack Chang (pic) started as the favourite in men's taijiquan and he lived up to expectations by delivering the gold for Sarawak with a masterful performance at the SM Teknik Kuala Terengganu yesterday.

The late bloomer from Miri was deemed not good enough to make the Sarawak squad for the Kedah Games two years ago.

Jack Chang, however, shot to fame by capturing the silver medal at the Asian Championships in Macau last month.

“It is surprising that I had won a medal at the Asian level but yet to compete in Sukma.

“I only improved recently because I used to be a changquan exponent in my teenage years,” said Jack Chang.

“My coaches told me to switch to taijiquan two years ago because my style is more suited to the slower paced discipline.

“I was drafted into the national squad in late 2006 and my fortunes have improved since.”

Jack Chang scored 9.63 yesterday to finish ahead of Malacca's Go Boon Siong (9.37) and Negri Sembilan's Chan Wai Lit (9.24).

He had a swollen knee sustained in training for the Games but still managed to give a gold medal-winning performance.

“I needed to use an ice pack before and after my performance.

“ It was painful, especially when I stomped the floor but I learned to bear the pain and carry on.

“The injury prevented me from being at my best but I was confident that my routine would still be good enough to beat the rest of the field here,” said Jack Chang.

His effort took Sarawak's tally of gold medals in wushu to six after two days of competitions.

The other Sarawak gold medallists are Wee Jung Jieh (changquan) and Lau Hui Wei (nanquan, gunshu) in the men's events and Ho Jong Xian (daoshu, gunshu) in the women's section.

The Star

SUKMA Games Results @ June 02, 200

2008-06-02T21:22:00.000-07:00

8 15:57 PM June 02, 200

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 2 (Bernama) -- Following are the second day results of the 12th SUKMA Games (Sukan Malaysia) held at various venues in Terengganu, Monday.

WUSHU

Changquan:

Gold : Wee Jung Jieh (Sarawak), Silver: Ng Say Yoke (Kedah), Bronze: Yap Foo Ming (Terengganu)

KARATE

Kumite Women Individual (below 53kg):

Gold : Maalani Chandran (Federal Terrorities), Silver: Jayenthi Kumaran (Perlis), Bronze: Om Sanjulla Vadivellu (Selangor), Siti Syaidatul Akmal Kamaruddin (Negeri Sembilan)

EQUESTRIAN

Endurance Team:

Gold : Federal Terrorities, Silver: Melaka, Bronze: Terengganu

Endurance Individual:

Gold : Abdul Rahman Mohd (Terengganu), Silver: Muhammad Alif Sabidi (Terengganu), Bronze: Muhammad Mu'az Hamdan (Melaka)

WEIGHTLIFTING

Men's 52kg Individual:

Gold : Mohd Zahir Abdul Rahim (Melaka), Silver: Lester Avin (Sabah), Bronze: M. Isfarizal Ishak (Pahang)

Mohd Zahir Abdul Rahim broke two Sukma Games records lifting 117kg in Clean and Jerk, and also 210kg in overall. The previous records were 115kg (clean and jerk) and 201kg (overall).

CYCLING

Men's 1.5km Downhill Mountain Bike:

Gold: Ghazali Hakiki Ali Samson (Sarawak) 2:13.27s, Silver: Muhammad Aim Mohamad Fauzi (Terengganu) 2:14.23, Bronze: Seow Hock Cheng (Negeri Sembilan) 2:15.52

Women's 1.5km Downhill Mountain Bike:

Gold: Masziyaton Md Radzi (Kedah) 2:43.32s, Silver: Azmanira Mohamad (Terengganu) 2:52.37, Bronze: Nursyuhaini Othman (Kedah) 2:56.69

ARCHERY

Men's 90m (Compound):

Gold: Mohd Khairuddin Ashah (Sarawak) 318pts, Silver: Muhd Juwaidi Mazuki (Melaka) 307, Bronze: G. Harvinder Singh (Federal Territories) 306

Men's 90m (Recurve):

Gold: Mohd Zulkifli Tahil (Federal Territories) 287pts, Silver: Fazli Hisham Fauzi (Terengganu) 282, Bronze: Tengku Wira Raja Yahya (Perak) 278

Men's 70m (Compound):

Gold: Zulkifli Mohd Yusof (Perak) 333 pts, Silver: Mohd Khairuddin Ashah (Sarawak) 331, Bronze: Mohd Juwaidi Mazuki (Melaka) 327

Men's 70m (Recurve):

Gold: Mohd Zulkifli Tahil (Federal Territories) 315 pts, Silver: Aiman Hafizuddin Kamaruzaman (Perak) 310, Bronze: Sia Puong Wei (Sarawak) 306

Women's (70m Compound):

Gold: Fatin Nurfatehah (Sabah) 325pts, Silver: G. Shamani (Penang) 324, Bronze: C.N.Saritha (Perak) 322

Women's (70m Recurve):

Gold: Irza Hanie Abu Samah (Melaka) 296pts, Silver: Judy Yong Ya Lu (Sarawak) 288, Bronze: Ooi Yee Ann (Penang) 287

Women's 60m (Recurve):

Gold: Irza Hanie Abu Samah (Melaka) 307 pts, Silver: Judy Yong (Sarawak) 299, Bronze: Ooi Yee Ann (Penang) 296

Women's 60m (Compound):

Gold: Fatin Nurfatehah (Sabah) 323 pts, Silver: G. Shamani (Penang) 322, Bronze: C.N. Saritha (Perak) 320

GYMNASTICS

Women's Artistic Team:

Gold: Melaka, Silver: Selangor, Bronze: Penang

FENCING

Men's Sabre:

Gold: Yu Peng Kean (Johor), Silver: Nurul Ariezzat Nazreen (Negeri Sembilan), Bronze: Ledi Boyd Maliban (Sabah); Abang Mohd Azlan (Sarawak)

Women's Individual Epee:

Gold: Nadzirah Mohd Adzem (Terengganu), Silver: Che Ku Nur Aida (Terengganu), Bronze: Noradeela Noorjali (Negeri Sembilan); Intan Safura Mohd Ali (Negeri Sembilan)

SWIMMING

Men: 200m Backstroke

Gold: Melvin Chua (Federal Territories) 02:09.95s, Silver: Brian Derrick Lim (Sarawak) 02:12.97s, Bronze: Lee Way Joe (Penang) 02:15.11s

100m Freestyle

Gold: Foo Jian Beng (Selangor) 50.94s (NGR), Silver: Edmund Ooi Jia En (Johor) 53.63s, Bronze: Clement David (Sabah) 53.64s

50m Butterfly

Gold: Foo Jian Beng (Selangor) 25.76s (NGR), Silver: Brian Derrick (Sarawak) 25.90s, Bronze: Clement David (Sabah) 26.26s

200m Individual Medley

Gold: Melvin Chua (Federal Territories) 02:11.07s, Silver: Foo Jian Beng (Selangor) 02:11.97s, Bronze: Lau Zheng Fong (Perak) 02:13.33s

Women: 200m Backstroke

Gold: Lew Yih Wey 02:17.45s (NGR), Silver: Cheng Karmen (Perak) 02:21.27s, Bronze: Carmen Ooi (Terengganu) 02:23.17s

100m Freestyle

Gold: Leung Chii Lin (Sabah) 58.14s (NGR), Silver: Chan Kah Yan (Federal Territories) 58.77s, Bronze: Heidi Gan (Federal Territories) 58.90s

50m Butterfly

Gold: Marellyn Liew (Sabah) 27.85s (NGR), Silver: Erika Kong (Sarawak) 29.93s, Bronze: Goh Suat Ying (Federal Territories) 30.08s

200m Individual Medley

Gold: Carmen Ooi (Terengganu) 02:21.22, Silver: Chan Kah Yan (Federal Territories) 02:24.66, Bronze: Cheng Karmen (Perak) 02:26.48

-- BERNAMA

Sukma: Opening ceremony highlights Terengganu’s culture and traditions

2008-06-02T21:15:00.001-07:00

THE 12th edition of the Malaysia Games (Sukma) was declared open by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin in a colourful and glittering ceremony at the Gong Badak Sports Complex last night.

The ceremony highlighted Terengganu’s friendly and gentle way of life.

The performances brought to the fore the culture and traditions that are unique to the East Coast state as well as their rich marine life and tourism attractions.

Although the opening ceremony, held at the new RM270mil 50,000-capacity main stadium bearing the King’s name, started at almost 9pm, the carnival-like atmosphere inside and around the arena had begun hours earlier.

The entry of the home contingent attracted the biggest cheer of the night.

The main dignitaries who attended the ceremony were the Agong, who is also the Sultan of Terengganu, and the Raja Permaisuri Tuanku Nur Zahirah as well as Terengganu Mentri Besar Datuk Ahmad Said, Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Sabri Ismail Yaakob and Information Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek.

The show kicked off with the ‘underwater’ performance by hundreds of schoolchildren. Dressed in bright orange, yellow and blue colours, they recreated scenes of the rich and diverse abundance of marine life in Terengganu.

Also making an appearance were the Games mascot, Si Diman, an orange and white striped clownfish that looks similar to the popular Disney cartoon character “Nemo”.

The next few performances showcased Terengganu’s cultural dances as well as a silat demonstration.

It was followed by the marching in of the 15 contingents, led by the 2006 hosts Kedah.

The seafaring nature of the Terengganu people is depicted in this dance during the opening ceremony.

The biggest cheers from the crowd were reserved for the host state’s contingent, who were the last to enter the running track in their smart black and white outfit.

Besides Kedah and Terengganu, the other teams contesting in the 12th Sukma are Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Penang, Perlis, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, Kelantan, Federal Territory, Johor, Malacca, Terengganu and Brunei.

The opening ceremony was a departure from the usual procedure of lighting the Games cauldron.

Arrows presented by the Agong were taken by 15 young archers to the field area. Using their bows, the archers fired their arrows towards a giant bull’s-eye target at the other end of the stadium.

As the arrows hit the target, a volley of fireworks from around the stadium lit up the Terengganu night sky.

At the same time, a giant clam structure opened up to reveal a rotating baton with the words Sukma Terengganu 2008 carved on it.

After the King declared the Games open, he was introduced to the chef-de-missions of all 15 contingents.

The dignitaries left shortly after, but the crowd stayed on, despite the fact that it was close to midnight, to lap up the song and dance show featuring several popular local artistes.

The chase for the 404 golds, 404 silvers and 505 bronzes in 31 sports in the 12th Sukma begins today.

The Star

Govt Always Gives Emphasis To Sporting Culture, Says PM

2008-05-29T20:49:00.000-07:00

KUALA TERENGGANU, May 29 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the government always gives emphasis on cultivating a strong sporting culture in achieving excellence at the international level.

As such, the Prime Minister said, it was important to scout for young talents in sports.

"I observe that the Malaysia Games (Sukma) has become one of the important platforms to do so.

"In this arena, the potentials and skills of the youngsters can be identified for development so that they can achieve greater success in sports," he said in his message in the souvenir book of the 12th Sukma from May 31 until June 9.

Abdullah said he was aware that competition in sports was very keen and challenging but this did not mean that Malaysian athletes were incapable of competing at the international level.

"The fact is that we have all the characteristics required to be excellent. We must inculcate a strong fighting spirit so that we don't easily surrender," he said.

The Prime Minister also congratulated the Terengganu state government for being the host of the 12th edition of Sukma.

-- BERNAMA

Stadium Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin To Be Ready By Thursday

2008-05-29T20:44:00.000-07:00

A view of the new 50,000-seat Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Gong Badak, Kuala Terengganu. The stadium will be ready in time for the Malaysia Games (Sukma) athletics competition beginning June 4 to 7. Pix: Bernama

KUALA TERENGGANU, May 29 (Bernama) -- The new 50,000-seat Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Gong Badak, Kuala Terengganu, will be ready in time for the Malaysia Games (Sukma) athletics competition beginning June 4 to 7.

The athletics technical delegate for Terengganu Sukma, S. Chinetamby said although it was a rushed job, it would be completed by Thursday with only the marking of lanes for the athletics track left to be done.

"I can see that all the work has been done and yesterday we checked all the technical parts of the stadium which include the photo-finish, digital score board and electronic devise measurement (EDM)," he told Bernama when contacted here Thursday.

He said the stadium, the largest in the East Coast, will be checked by the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF).

"The IAAF delegates will be here in the next few days and approve the "A" certificate for the Stadium of International standard," he said.

The stadium was officially opened by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin on May 10.

However, Chinetamby said all the officials will hold a dry run on May 3 to ensure everything was fine before the competition day.

Sukma, a platform to unearth new talents for the country, will be hosted by Terengganu for the first time from May 31 to June 9.

The Games will have a change in format in deciding the overall champions this time. Instead of the total points collected, the gold medal count will decide the champions.

After barring the national athletes from competing at the last Sukma in Kedah two years ago, the Sukma Supreme Council have agreed to allow the nations stars to make a return to this years Under-23 tournament.

And for the first time, top national athletes who are not eligible to compete for Sukma would also be invited to compete in selected sports to add glamour to the 12th edition of the Games.

-- BERNAMA

Just three minutes to provide the results, say Sukma organisers

2008-05-29T20:34:00.000-07:00

THE organisers of the 12th Sukma have given an assurance that results from all competition venues in Terengganu will be delivered quickly.

The state's executive committee chairman for Youth and Sports, Datuk Abdul Rahin Mohd Said (pic), said that the results and also updates could be accessed on their website.

“With the advanced IT services in the country, we should be able to provide the results within three minutes after the completion of events,” said Abdul Rahin at a press conference at the Gong Badak Sports Complex to update the media on their final preparations of the Games, which will be officially open by the King tomorrow.

However, until yesterday, the broadband wireless service at the Main Press Centre (MPC) in the complex was still not up yet. The MPC is well-equipped for 200 media members and personal computers have been installed.

On the venues of competitions in seven districts of Terengganu, Abdul Rahin ensured that there would be smooth operations for all 34 sports, including the three demonstration events – kabaddi, Formula Future and silambam.

“This is the first Sukma where each district will host at least an event to mark the celebration of the Malaysia Games. As such, we will ensure smooth operations,” he said.

He said that after months of preparations, all venues were now ready except for women's hockey and athletics at the vicinity of the Gong Badak Sports Complex, which required final touch-ups.

“Only the final touches are being done now, such as painting the walls and cleaning the floors. Everything else is in place,” he said.

A total of 404 gold medals will be at stake in the Sukma. The first of medal events will be held on Sunday and 19 will be at stake – eight in swimming, four in karate, two each in cycling-cross country and fencing and one each in equestrian, gymnastics and bowling.

Competitions on June 4 offer the most gold medals – 68.

Star

Selangor cyclist has to fend off Azizol in bid for Sukma gold

2008-05-28T20:12:00.001-07:00

By NG WEI LOON

Technical glitch: A training crew assisting Azizi (left) to change his front tyre.

IT is going to be tougher for Selangor cyclist Mohd Akmal Amrun to defend his gold medal in the men's 1km time trial at the Malaysia Games (Sukma) in Terengganu from May 31 to June 9.

Selangor Cycling Association (SCA) secretary Amrun Misnoh admitted Akmal would face a stiff test going up against Olympic-bound cyclist Azizol Hasni Awang in the sprint event.

“Akmal contributed three gold medals for Selangor at the previous Games held in Kedah two years ago. Then, he took the 1km individual time trial, 40km individual time trial and 80km criterium point race,” he added.

However, the SCA is aiming to repeat the feat and match the three gold medal achievement at the upcoming biennial Games.

The team comprising 12 men and eight women cyclists went through the paces in the centralised training for three weeks under the guidance of three coaches – Valentine Sotnikov, Nazali Talib and former national cyclist Shahrulneeza Razali.

The 21-year-old Akmal said he had a thorough preparation as a build up for his final appearance at Sukma.

“I am confident that I will be among the medal contenders for both the 1km and 45km individual time trial. I will also be featuring in the team time trial. But, I am still not sure whether I will get to ride in the team road race,” added Akmal, who is pursuing his pre-university education at Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS).

Besides Akmal, Selangor will also have the service of national cyclist Rauf Nur Misbah to fight for the top spot on the podium in the men's individual road race.

In addition, the quartet of Uracca Leow, Nurul Ahmar Badrul Zaman, Nurul Shafinaz Moklas and Muslihah Salim are also expected to spearhead the Selangor challenge to bag the gold medal in the women's team time trial.

Selangor has also included rookie Hamdan Hamidon in the men's line-up.

On the move: Selangor cyclists going through the paces in training.

The 14-year-old, making his debut at the Games, will take part in the men's criterium and mountain bike cross-country events.

“Training with the seniors in the Sukma squad has been a good learning experience. For each ride, we register up to 150km. It has always been tough to keep up with the pace set by the more established riders,” said Hamdan, a SMK Seksyen 11, Shah Alam student.

Meanwhile, Hamdan and newcomer Malek Marcus Abd Tariq confirmed their places for an international junior tour at St Petersburg, Russia in July.

“This will be our fourth time taking part in the tour. Although we did not do well in the first two editions, we have been making steady progress over the past two years. We accomplished our best outing last year and we are going all out to maintain our good run in the tour,” added Amrun.

Last season, the pint-sized Hamdan took the final two stages to emerge the team's best performer.

Star

Hui Lin aims to make up for two forgettable outings in Sukma

2008-05-28T20:11:00.003-07:00

By RAJES PAUL

PETALING JAYA: National shuttler Ng Hui Lin limped out of Sukma in Kedah two years ago with a torn ligament.

This time in Terengganu, Hui Lin will be teaming up with younger sister Hui Ern to make her third outing in the Games for Selangor a memorable one.

The badminton competitions will be played at the Berlian Utama Hall in Kemaman from June 1-8.

Besides Hui Lin, Selangor have two other national players in their girls team – fellow Uber Cuppers Sabrina Chong and Woon Khe Wei. The others are Yang Lilian, Yap Harn Xin, S. Premalatha and Kwan Suk Lee. All the players except for Lilian have competed in previous Games.

Good show: At the recent Uber Cup Finals in Jakarta, Ng Hui Lin (front) gave creditable performances partnering seasoned campaigner Lim Pek Siah.

The 17-year-old Hui Lin, who has shown great improvement in her game since training with the elite squad under the charge of Rexy Mainaky this year, is determined to make an impact in the Games.

At the recent Uber Cup Finals in Jakarta, she gave creditable performances partnering seasoned campaigner Lim Pek Siah.

“I don't have anything good to remember from the previous two outings in Sukma. I did not fare well in my debut in Seremban,” said Hui Lin.

“It was worse in Alor Star. I tore a ligament and had to pull out of the competition. It was a painful episode. I had to go for surgery and was out for six months. I am glad that my badminton career is back on the right track again. I want to give my best and hope to win a gold medal for Selangor.”

Hui Lin is relishing the prospect of playing together with her younger sister.

“We have a strong team this time. My sister also did well recently in the doubles event. She has beaten several top players (at the national schools championships) and that will be the extra motivation for her in Sukma.”

The other states with the ability to spoil the party for Selangor are Penang, powered by Tee Jing Yee; Malacca, led by Julia Wong; and Kuala Lumpur, headed by Lydia Cheah.

A total of seven gold medals are at stake and Selangor are aiming to nail three of them.

National players can only feature in two events – one individual and the team competition.

In the men's competitions, Selangor have Sharizal Latif, Shawal Ismail, S. Naresh, Zulfadli Zulkifli, Chong Zhen Wei, Chang Jian Shiang, Haqim Ayub and Rumli Ali in their ranks.

Star

Golfers prepare for Sukma through intensive training

2008-05-28T20:11:00.001-07:00

By Y.P. SIVAM

UNITED STATES based golfers Ainil Johani Abu Bakar and Mohammad Iszaimi Ismail have returned to spearhead Selangor's challenge in the Sukma in Kuala Terengganu on May 31-June 9.

Ainil Johani and Mohammad Iszaimi are members of the Selangor training squad of five men and four women.

Sharing tips: Coach Harris Zainal (in white T-shirt) giving some pointers to Mohammad Iylia Jamil while the other players watch.

Besides Ainil Johani, the other women in the squad are Khairunhanisah Azlan, Isza Fariza Ismail and Nurain Nabeela Abdul Ghani.

The five men training squad comprises Mohammad Iszaimi, Daniel Azuan Suhaimee, Muhammad Iylia Jamil, Gavin Kyle Green and Wilson Choo.

Ainil Johani was the bronze medallist in the SEA Games in Korat last year; Muhammad Iylia is a former national player while Choo and Green are members of the National squad.

Selangor coach Harris Zainal said they would name their final squad of four men and three women before departure to Kuala Terengganu.

The golf event in the Sukma will be held at the Tuanku Mirzan Golf and Country Club on June 3-5. Four gold medals are stake in the golf event. Selangor had dominated the golf event in the last two Games in Negri Sembilan and Kedah.

Naturally, Selangor are eager to continue their supremacy in the golf event in Sukma. Harris said they had a wealth of talents in the team.

Monitoring: Harris watches Isza Fariza Ismail putting during a training session.

“But more importantly, the players must be in the right frame of mind to battle the golf course. The prevailing wind conditions at the course are quite challenging. The course is very straightforward. If our players can overcome the wind conditions, then we are on course for glory,'' said Harris after a training session at the Kelab Golf Negara Subang.

The players had the opportunity to test the course when they took part in the Terengganu Amateur Open championships early this month.

Selangor's preparation started in November last year. According to Harris, they had identified the nine players based on their results in local and international competitions and the national trials.

“We have been monitoring their performance in the competitions. We also get together for training sessions every month. During the sessions we have the chance to exchange ideas as well as listen to the players' comments. We are pleased with the players' enthusiasm,'' said Harris.

In Kuala Terengganu, the women will be involved in two rounds while the men will play three rounds. The team gold medal will be determined with the two best scores for women and three best scores for men.

The Selangor team will leave for Kuala Terengganu on Saturday. Before the competition begins on June 3, the players will get the opportunity to evaluate their progress during the practice rounds.

Star

Shaharudin eyeing Sukma gold to win ticket to world meet

2008-05-28T20:09:00.001-07:00

KUALA LUMPUR: The stakes are higher for karate exponent Shaharudin Jamaludin in his second appearance in Sukma.

Shaharudin bagged the below 70kg (kumite) gold medal at the last Games in Alor Star two years ago and subsequently earned a call-up to the national elite team. But this time, the pressure will be greater on the youngest member of the national men's team to live up to his billing again in the competition in Marang.

The 20-year-old is eyeing a place in the squad for the Asian Juniors in Kota Kinabalu and also the World Championships in Japan at the end of the year.

While his chances of making it to the Asian Juniors should not be in doubt, it is the selection for the world meet that is on his mind.

“The national coach (P. Arivalagan) has decided on a few names but he has kept the selection open in my category. He wants to look at our current form,” said Shaharudin.

“I was just a newcomer when I won in Sukma two years ago. There is more reason for me to make sure that I bag the gold for Federal Territories in my second outing. There is pressure because everyone will be gunning for me but it motivates me to live up to expectations.”

In his SEA Games debut in Korat last year, Shaharudin was in the silver medal-winning team and he took bronze in his individual event.

Shaharudin has a sister, Jamaliah, in the national team. Jamaliah was a gold medallist at the SEA Games last year but she is not eligible to defend the Sukma title. The competitions in Sukma are for Under-23 exponents.

However, Federal Territories can also count on the services of other national team members, among them G. Yugneswary and K. Jayaseelan.

Federal Territories, featuring exponents from Kuala Lumpur, emerged as the overall champions at the last Games, bagging four gold medals and Arivalagan, who is the team manager, is looking at his exponents doubling the count this time.

“National exponents have been allowed to compete and we can expect strong challenges from Selangor, Perak and Kedah. Besides the three national team members, we also have a few national back-up exponents and we are confident they will not let us down,” he said.

Star

Malaysian games / Athletics: Organisers: Stadium will be ready on time

2008-05-28T20:07:00.002-07:00

IT’S been a rushed job but the Malaysia Games athletics competition will not be affected by delays in completion of work at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Gong Badak.

Venue coordinator Rajemah Sheikh Ahmad said the stadium management had promised that the lining of lanes for the athletics track would be completed by today with half the work already done yesterday, while technical equipment for the athletics competition are already prepared.

“I don’t foresee a problem, but of course right now everything is being rushed.

“The Malaysian AAU (MAAU) has already sent its technical delegation down earlier to be prepared for any glitches, so we are all working to make sure everything is in place,” said Rajemah.

The new Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium, while looking good to be among the better sporting facilities in the country, was found to be lagging as far as construction work was concerned.
With two days to the opening ceremony, the venue was still not fully prepared, prompting fears that the athletics competition would be affected.

“On the stadium side, things have been delayed, but on the technical side for the athletics competition we’re well-prepared.

“We’re already fine-tuning the photo-finish equipment and we were testing the interfacing today (yesterday).

“We hope that the track lining will be completed by tomorrow (today) so we can have some tests prior to the competition,” said Rajemah.

“We still have some time before the athletics competition is scheduled to start on June 4 (next Wednesday), so after the stadium is used for the opening ceremony on Saturday, everything should be ready on time so the athletes can try out the track prior to the start of competition.”

NST

Malaysian games / Sailing: Sabah still confident without Rufina

2008-05-28T20:07:00.001-07:00

THE absence of Doha Asian Games winner Rufina Tan and the presence of a plethora of national sailors at the Malaysia Games poses a formidable challenge to a young Sabah sailing team hoping to repeat their three-gold haul of 2006.

Rufina opted to skip the Malaysia Games in Terengganu having sacrificed her studies in the lead up to the 2006 Doha Asian Games, where she won gold in the optimist, thus forcing her to play catch up with her schoolwork.

Added to that, Sabah’s three gold medals in the last Games in Kedah all came in the optimist categories, for which their sailors are now overaged.

Josephine Tan and Mabel Lim who finished 1-2 in the girls’ optimist in Kedah have graduated to the International 420 but face an uphill struggle against the sister combination from Kedah of Siti Noorbaidurah and Khairunnisa Mohd Afendy, who start as favourites.

Similarly Sabah’s boys’ optimist champion of 2006, Adrian Brian Chang, has moved up to the laser radial where another of Kedah’s Mohd Afendy siblings, Khairulnizam, is the favourite.
“Our sailors who won in 2006 are all sailing in different classes this time so it is very difficult to assess their chances,” said Sabah team manager Shoon Yun Chin yesterday in a telephone interview from Setiu, where the sailing events will be held from Tuesday.

“The sailing fleet is also a lot stronger than the last time with the national sailors all competing here.

“We are hopeful of giving our best and are looking at medals of any colour.”

In Rufina’s absence, Perak’s Nurul Elia Anuar, the Asian Games bronze medallist in the women’s laser 4.7, is the main attraction in Setiu when she takes to the sea in the laser radial event.

Seven gold medals are on offer in sailing in the men’s and women’s optimist, laser radial and International 420 and the mixed team optimist event.

NST

Malaysian games / Swimming: Hosts looking to Carmen

2008-05-28T20:05:00.000-07:00

Terengganu’s swimming squad pose at the State Aquatics Centre in Pantai Batu Buruk yesterday.

JUST a few medals of any colour from the pool in the Malaysia Games they host will do Terengganu swimming a world of good.

Like a few other sports, organised swimming in the State had to start almost from scratch and this began just over a year ago with the formation of the Terengganu Amateur Swimming Association (TAFA), in view mainly of hosting the Malaysia Games.

Prior to this, Terengganu did not even have a body in charge of the sport in the State, but with the completion of the compact yet impressive facilities at the newly-refurbished State Aquatics Centre in Pantai Batu Buruk, Kuala Terengganu, it looks like the state is taking the sport very seriously.

“We have mostly young swimmers, the oldest in our development programme is Tengku Mohd Firdaus Adli Naqib, who is 16, while the youngest, Amy Tan, is just 11,” said former national swimmer Wong Tuck Kar, who took charge as coach of the Terengganu team just four months ago.

“We are looking at the future with a very young batch of swimmers, but we also hope for some medals and the swimmer with the responsibility to do that is Carmen Ooi.”
Carmen, 18, is based in New Zealand and will return to represent the state for the first time. She is slotted for nine events, but is likely to deliver in the 100m and 200m backstroke, which are her specialties.

“Frankly, we don’t know what the level here will be like against the level Carmen has been used to in New Zealand as she’s not competed in Malaysia for a long time.

“But we do need some medals, of any colour, to drive the interest in the sport over here,” added Tuck Kar, who has 15 swimmers, nine boys and six girls, under his charge for the Malaysia Games.

NST

Malaysian games / karate: Perak boosted by Guna’s return

2008-05-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

PERAK’S karate squad received a boost when it was confirmed that their national exponent L. Gunaseelan is back in the team for the Terengganu Malaysia Games.

Gunaseelan won a gold medal in the 60kg and below at the 2004 Games in Seremban but was barred from the following edition in Kedah two years later after being named to the national team.

Perak chief coach K. Ananthan said his exponents are determined to improve the one gold, one silver and one bronze they picked up in Kedah, and their target this year is three gold and more silver and bronze.

Ananthan said that apart from Gunaseelan, Perak’s other medal prospects are Mohamed Hatta, gold medallist in 2004 in the 75kg category, L.Thiagu Pillai in the 55kg and A. Kathiresan in the 70kg and below.

NST

Terengganu kejar masa siapkan kemudahan

2008-05-28T19:53:00.001-07:00

TUAN rumah Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) XII, Terengganu kini mengejar masa untuk menyiapkan beberapa kemudahan seperti pusat media, balapan Stadium Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin serta kebersihan di dalam dan luar Kompleks Sukan Gong Badak (KSGB).

Sehingga semalam, pekerja masih bertungkus lumus untuk menyiapkan beberapa kerja kecil termasuk Pusat Media di Stadium Sultan Mizan, yang masih belum beroperasi walaupun pertandingan bola sepak sudah bermula, semalam.

Malah, petugas pusat media juga tidak dapat memberikan jaminan pusat itu akan dapat digunakan hari ini, walaupun kumpulan wartawan sudah mula tiba di Kuala Terengganu.

Begitu juga dengan balapan stadium utama bagi acara olahraga yang menyaksikan kerja-kerja membuat garisan baru dilakukan semalam, oleh pegawai teknikal Persekutuan Olahraga Antarabangsa (IAAF) dari British yang memberi jaminan semua garisan, warna-warna berlainan serta nombor-nombor akan siap sepenuhnya sebelum upacara pembukaan rasmi, Sabtu ini.

Pada masa sama, keadaan dalam stadium yang tidak begitu bersih serta berhabuk, memerlukan pertugas untuk bekerja lebih masa bagi memastikan semuanya dalam keadaan elok sebelum temasya bermula.

Malah, kawasan sekeliling KSGB perlu lebih diperindahkan dengan tanaman-tanaman, yang ketika ini tampak begitu kurang dan agak berhabuk.

Bagaimanapun, tuan rumah masih mempunyai tiga hari untuk memastikan semua kerja-kerja kecil itu dapat disiapkan sebelum temasya nasional berkenaan dibuka secara rasmi Sabtu ini.

Berita Harian

2008-05-28T19:52:00.001-07:00

Mohd Arif galas cabaran badminton NS

Oleh Mohd Amin Jalil

SKUAD badminton Negeri Sembilan menagih sumbangan naib juara remaja Asia 2007, Mohd Arif Abdul Latif untuk merealisasikan sasaran meraih sekurang-kurangnya dua pingat emas pada temasya Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) XII di Terengganu.

Pemain remaja kebangsaan itu yang turut bersama dalam skuad Piala Thomas negara di Jakarta baru-baru ini, akan beraksi dalam acara perseorangan dan beregu campuran bersama kakaknya, Nairul Syuhada Abdul Latif.

Pengurus pasukan, Shabaruddin Ali, berkata skuad Negeri Sembilan membariskan 16 pemain untuk menggalas cabaran pada temasya kali ini, yang kebanyakannya pemain berpengalaman kerana sering bertanding pada kejohanan remaja kebangsaan termasuk peringkat Majlis Sukan Sekolah-Sekolah Malaysia (MSSM).

Beliau berkata, pihaknya yakin dengan barisan pemain terutama Mohd Arif yang sudah membuktikan kredibilitinya selaku pemain perseorangan berbakat besar selepas menerima bimbingan sempurna kendalian Persatuan Badminton Malaysia (BAM), malah Sukma ini adalah penyertaan keduanya.

"Mohd Arif adalah sandaran utama kami menerusi acara perseorangan dan beregu campuran berpasangan dengan Nairul Syuhada, yang tidak kurang hebatnya kerana sering menyertai kejohanan peringkat negeri, sirkit remaja kebangsaan dan jemputan luar negara.

"Bagaimanapun, mereka yang lain yang turut berada dalam kelompok 16 pemain ini juga berkemampuan mencipta kejutan untuk meraih emas sekali pun reputasi mereka tidak sehebat Mohd Arif," katanya.

Pemain lain yang menganggotai skuad berkenaan antaranya ialah Nairul Athirah Abdul Latif, Nairul Nabilah Abdul Latif, Aliff Esro Mohd Romzi, Low Wei Seng, Goh Sze Boon, R Dinesh, P Patmanathan, S Thaswani dan Eng Loo Heng.

Acara badminton yang menawarkan tujuh emas akan bermula Ahad ini bagi kategori berpasukan.

Menurut Shabaruddin, prestasi semua pemain amat memberangsangkan selepas menjalani latihan intensif di bawah bimbingan jurulatih Zainal Nasir dan kini mereka sudah sedia untuk memulakan aksi cemerlang seperti yang diharapkan.

"Kami yakin dapat melakukan yang terbaik pada temasya kali ini berbanding di Kedah dua tahun lalu apabila berjaya membawa pulang satu emas, dua perak dan dua gangsa," katanya yang menegaskan antara pencabar utama mereka ialah Sabah, Selangor dan Kedah.

Berita Harian

Terengganu, Kedah dipaksa kerja keras

2008-05-28T19:51:00.001-07:00

Oleh Lukman Salleh, Harris Rajahdin dan Hamid Salleh

CABAR pemain Terengganu, Ahmad Nordin Alias (kanan) cuba merampas bola daripada pemain Perak, Mohd Asrul Shafie di Stadium Ismail Nasiruddin Shah, semalam.

Juara dan naib juara lalu diberi saingan sengit

JUARA dan naib juara Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) dua tahun lalu, Terengganu dan Kedah, masing-masing bergelut untuk melakarkan kemenangan ke atas lawan masing-masing apabila acara bola sepak memulakan aksinya, semalam.

Terengganu, tuan rumah Sukma XII terpaksa berhempas pulas menundukkan Perak 3-2 dalam perlawanan Kumpulan A di Stadium Ismail Nasiruddin Shah, manakala Kedah, juga bergelut untuk mengatasi Sabah dengan jaringan yang sama di Padang A, Kompleks Sukan Gong Badak (KSGB), semalam.

Bagi Kedah, yang membariskan ramai pemain Liga Super dan Liga Perdana, tampak belum dapat mencapai keserasian, dengan gerakan yang agak tumpul serta pertahanan lemah, yang menyaksikan Sabah, hampir lagi berjaya mencuri mata.

Namun jaringan pemain muda berbakat Mohd Bunyamin Omar, yang meledakkan dua gol pada minit ke-25 dan 56 melalui sepakan penalti, serta jaringan Mohd Hazwan Zainun, cukup memastikan kemenangan Kedah.

"Memang perlawanan pertama agak sukar tetapi saya gembira dapat menyumbang dua gol untuk membantu kemenangan Kedah," kata Bunyamin, antara dua pemain yang mendapat peluang menjalani latihan singkat dua minggu di kelab Liga Perdana Inggeris, Chelsea, bulan lalu.

"Tetapi masih ada ruang untuk kami meningkat kerana perlawanan yang kami tunjukkan hari ini tidaklah memuaskan.

"Saya percaya perlawanan berikutnya (menentang Kelantan), kami akan dapat meningkatkan permainan sebelum turun bertemu Selangor," katanya.

Sabah, yang ketinggalan 2-0 pada separuh masa bangkit merapatkan jurang melalui sepakan penalti yang disempurnakan Azrul Ejati pada minit ke-51 tetapi kemudian mendapati diri mereka ketinggalan 3-1 apabila Bunyamin pula menyempurnakan penalti lima minit kemudian.

Sabah tidak berputus asa dan pada minit ke-85 berjaya menyumbatkan gol kedua melalui Muhd Ibnu Kassim selepas menerima hantaran lintang sebelah kiri.

"Memang ada kekurangan dalam perlawanan kami hari ini terutama sekali dalam membentuk keserasian antara pemain Liga Super dan Liga Perdana dalam skuad Kedah," kata jurulatihnya, Muhamad Ramlee.

"Tetapi ia tidak membimbangkan saya kerana masih ada masa untuk kami memperbaiki segala kesilapan dan mencari keserasian."

Sementara itu, dalam satu lagi perlawanan Kumpulan B, Selangor dengan mudah menudukkan Kelantan, 3-0.

Selangor mendahului 1-0 pada separuh masa melalui jaringan Mohd Fitri Shazwan Riduwan pada minit ke-40, sebelum menambah dua gol lagi selepas perlawanan bersambung semula melalui Mohd Zaiza Zainal Abidin (m-51) dan Mohd Alifi Mahmud (m-65).

Berita Harian

Selangor buka langkah kanan

2008-05-28T19:50:00.001-07:00

Oleh DRAHMAN BAHARUN
drahman@kosmo.com.my

PERTEMUAN sulung antara Selangor dengan Kelantan dalam acara bola sepak Sukma XII semalam.

SELANGOR memulakan langkah kanan apabila mencatatkan kemenangan 3-0 ke atas Kelantan pada saingan Kumpulan B acara bola sepak temasya Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) XII di Padang B, Kompleks Sukan Gong Badak, Kuala Terengganu semalam.

Skuad bimbingan bekas pemain kebangsaan yang juga jurulatih skuad senior Selangor, Dollah Salleh itu berada pada kelas tersendiri dengan corak permainan bertenaga sepanjang 90 minit permainan itu berlangsung.

Selangor yang bertekad untuk mengulangi kejayaan meraih pingat emas pada edisi 1998 memperoleh gol menerusi Mohd. Fitri Shazwan Raduwan pada minit ke-40, Zaiza Zainal Abidin (minit ke-51) dan Alafi Mahmud (minit ke-65).

Bagi Dollah, kejayaan yang dilakar anak buahnya pada perlawanan pertama ini banyak dibantu dengan kehadiran pemain berpengalaman yang beraksi dalam saingan Liga Super dan Liga Perdana.

Menurutnya, barisan serangan berjaya melakukan beberapa serangan merbahaya sambil dibantu posisi pertahanan yang banyak menangkis serangan lawan.

"Saya dapat merasakan persembahan pertama kami agak mantap. Kami mengharapkan ia dapat dikekalkan pada perlawanan seterusnya," katanya.

Antara pemain Liga Super Selangor yang beraksi dalam skuad Sukma kali ini termasuklah penjaga gol, Nuraizat Aziz, Zaiza, Fadzirul Zakaria, Asraruddin Putra Omar, Safiq Rahim, Fazilidin Khalid, Nasriq Baharom dan Wan Hoesne Wan Hussain.

Selain itu, beberapa pemain dari skuad Liga Perdana PKNS turut diserapkan dalam skuad ini seperti Alafi, Fairul Nizwan Nasir, Aizul Ridzwan Razali, Adib Azuddin Latif serta Sazali Suwandi dan Fazli Baharuddin.

Begitupun, Dollah masih enggan mendabik dada mengenai kemenangan yang diraih anak buahnya itu, sebaliknya mengingatkan mereka agar memberi fokus penuh dalam setiap perlawanan yang bakal diharungi selepas ini.

"Pemain diminta lebih fokus pada temasya kali ini kerana cabaran akan lebih sukar lebih-lebih lagi dengan keadaan cuaca panas di Terengganu," tambahnya.

Untuk rekod, kali terakhir Selangor meraih emas acara bola sepak adalah ketika mereka menjadi tuan rumah pada edisi Sukma 1998.

Sementara pada edisi 2006 di Kedah lalu, Selangor tersingkir pada saingan peringkat kumpulan.

Selangor yang diundi dalam Kumpulan B akan menentang Sabah Jumaat ini diikuti menentang naib juara 2006, Kedah pada hari Ahad.

KOSMO

Cai Lin tetap mahu emas Sukma

2008-05-28T19:48:00.000-07:00

CAI LIN

KHOO CAI LIN yang terpilih mewakili negara bagi acara renang pada Sukan Olimpik Beijing Ogos depan, berazam memenangi pingat emas bagi Selangor pada Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) XII yang bermula di Kompleks Akuatik Batu Burok, Kuala Terengganu Ahad ini.

Perenang berusia 19 tahun yang memegang rekod kebangsaan bagi acara 200m gaya bebas dan 800m gaya bebas ini juga dijangka mengambil bahagian dalam dua acara berganti-ganti.

Selain Cai Lin, perenang lain yang akan beraksi pada temasya kali ini termasuk tiga lagi wakil negara ke Sukan Olimpik iaitu Daniel Bego dari Sarawak (200m gaya bebas, 100m dan 200m kupu-kupu), Lew Yih Wei dari Negri Sembilan (400m rampaian individu) dan Leung Chii Lin dari Sabah (50m gaya bebas).

Yih Wei, 17, mencatat kejayaan cemerlang pada Sukma 2006 apabila memenangi pingat emas bagi acara 200m kuak lentang, kuak dada dan kupu-kupu; 200m, 400m dan 800m gaya bebas; dan 200m dan 400m rampaian individu.

Dia juga mencipta rekod baru Sukma bagi tujuh daripada sembilan acara yang dimenanginya, termasuk rekod kebangsaan bagi acara 200m kuak lentang.

Sukma kali ini akan mengubah format dalam menentukan juara keseluruhan.

Berbanding jumlah mata yang dijadikan penentu dalam menetapkan juara keseluruhan sebelum ini, Sukma Terengganu 2008 akan menobatkan juara keseluruhan berdasarkan jumlah pingat emas yang diraih oleh sesebuah kontinjen.

KOSMO

Sukma belum bermula tapi sudah kecoh

2008-05-28T19:47:00.000-07:00

Oleh NURUL AMALINA RAMLEE
sukan@kosmo.com.my

SEBAHAGIAN peniaga menunjukkan notis yang akan diberikan kepada sekreteriat Sukma XII mengenai gerai mereka yang tidak memiliki kemudahan lengkap di Kompleks Sukan Negeri Gong Badak.

SUKAN Malaysia edisi ke-12 belum bermula secara rasminya, tetapi kekecohan sudah berlaku.

Perkara seperti ini tidak elok untuk disajikan kepada pengunjung sempena Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) XII kerana bak kata pepatah, 'kerana nila setitik, rosak susu sebelanga.'

Kekecohan itu berlaku disebabkan salah faham yang tercetus di tapak acara temasya itu di Stadium Utama, Kompleks Sukan Negeri, Gong Badak.

Semuanya gara-gara penganjuran satu karnival di tapak A perkarangan stadium itu yang statusnya mengelirukan sehingga menimbulkan rasa tidak puas hati banyak pihak.

Penganjuran karnival itu dikatakan tidak mendapat kelulusan permit daripada pihak Majlis Bandaraya Kuala Terengganu (MBKT), sedangkan pada awalnya peserta telah dijanjikan oleh pihak Sekretariat Sukma XII untuk menguruskan permit tersebut.

Apa yang berlaku adalah sebaliknya di mana permit tidak diuruskan seperti yang telah dijanjikan sebelum ini.

Keadaan itu disedari setelah pihak MBKT datang ke tapak karnival itu untuk menghalang penganjuran karnival berkenaan.

"Kami rasa teraniaya dan amat kecewa atas segala yang berlaku itu," luah penganjur karnival itu, Andri Abdul Hadi pada satu sidang media di perkarangan stadium berkenaan.

Lebih memeranjatkan mereka apabila janji-janji yang ditaburkan pihak sekretariat untuk menguruskan permit mereka tidak dikotakan.

Malah, dia bersama 30 peniaga lain terpaksa menanggung segala kerugian termasuk kos bekalan elektrik dan air dan bayaran artis untuk konsert, yang mencecah hampir RM850, 000.

"Dulu kami dijanjikan dengan kemudahan bekalan air dan elektrik, malah mereka juga memberitahu akan menguruskan permit penganjuran karnival ini.

"Tetapi apabila semuanya sudah siap dipasang, lain pula yang jadi," jelasnya.

Sementara itu, Pengurus Tajaan, Promosi dan Publisiti Sukma, Khairol Azmei berkata, sebenarnya perjanjian yang dibuat adalah untuk karnival Pra Sukma, bukannya Sukma.

"Karnival itu sepatutnya diadakan pada Pra Sukma lalu, tetapi disebabkan beberapa masalah ia ditunda untuk Sukma.

"Tetapi surat yang kami keluarkan hanya untuk Pra-Sukma dan tiada kaitan langsung dengan Sukma.

"Yang boleh kami katakan bahawa kami tidak pernah menghalang mereka untuk berniaga," jelasnya.

Tambahnya, pihaknya juga tidak akan bertanggungjawab dalam masalah tersebut kerana pihak sekretariat tidak pernah menghalang penganjuran karnival tersebut.

Ketika ditanya mengapa pihaknya tidak mengeluarkan surat perjanjian untuk penganjuran karnival Sukma itu, Khairol berkata: "Mungkin kami terlepas pandang."

KOSMO

Harimau Selatan mahu 40 emas

2008-05-28T19:46:00.001-07:00

ATLET Johor bersemangat memburu kejayaan pada Sukma XII di Terengganu.

SASARAN 40 pingat emas.
Itulah impian kontinjen Johor pada Sukan Malaysia (Sukma) XII yang akan berlangsung di Terengganu bermula Sabtu hingga 9 Jun depan.

Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Belia dan Sukan negeri, Md. Jais Sarday berkata, dia yakin kontinjen Johor yang mendapat jolokan Harimau Selatan itu dapat mencapai sasaran tersebut.

Menurutnya, sasaran tersebut adalah berdasarkan kepada beberapa faktor termasuk penyertaan semula beberapa jenis sukan yang dikuasai Johor seperti kayak dan judo.

"Selain itu, peningkatan had umur daripada 21 kepada 23 tahun dalam beberapa cara sukan juga memberi kelebihan kepada kita.

"Ia ditambah dengan kelonggaran untuk membenarkan atlet yang mewakili negara untuk beraksi pada Sukma 2008 nanti," katanya pada majlis penyerahan bendera negeri kepada kontinjen Johor di Teluk Danga, semalam.

Majlis tersebut disempurnakan oleh Menteri Besar, Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman.

Menurut Md. Jais lagi, pada temasya kali ini Johor menghantar seramai 466 atlet dan 269 daripadanya adalah atlet lelaki.

Sebagai persediaan menghadapi Sukma XII, Johor turut menghantar atletnya berlatih di luar negara bagi memantapkan lagi prestasi mereka.

Antara pasukan yang menjalani latihan di luar negara termasuk skuad lawan pedang di Makati, Filipina, silat (Batam, Indonesia) dan judo (Surabaya, Indonesia).

Sementara itu, dalam ucapan ringkasnya, Abd. Ghani menekankan agar atlet Johor memelihara disiplin selain mempamerkan semangat berpasukan yang tinggi.

"Ini adalah untuk menjaga nama baik negeri Johor.

"Selain itu, apa yang diharapkan adalah mereka boleh mencapai sasaran 40 pingat emas," ujarnya.

KOSMO

Malaysian games: Terengganu in rush to get things going

2008-05-27T18:17:00.002-07:00

Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium is yet to be dusted down with finishing touches still being put into place.

TERENGGANU is in a frantic race to be ready to host the 12th edition of the Malaysia Games which opens officially in two days.

The spanking new 49,000-seater Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium is yet to be dusted down with finishing touches still being put into place. Even the athletics track is yet to be lined and work on that was still going on yesterday.

Many of the venues have not been able to hold test events and will jump straight into action after being completed. For the spectators, finding these venues within the main complex is also difficult as signages have yet to be put up.

Refurbishment works at the State Aquatics Complex also seemed just completed without any sign of having been tested, while the Kuala Terengganu City Council Hockey Stadium next to it was also still undergoing refurbishment.

The signs are that the general elections and the Terengganu Menteri Besar crisis that followed, resulting in Datuk Ahmad Said taking over from Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh two months ago, has taken its toll on the event. Everything is said to have been left hanging with uncertainty over the leader of the state government.
But Malaysia Games 2008 chief executive officer Arpin Draman refused to blame those circumstances.

"There's no doubt that we're in a race against time. But the target date is not May 28, but May 31. There won't be any activity in the main stadium until the 31st (of May), which is the opening ceremony and athletics only begins competion on June 4," said Arpin.

Officials stated that signages within the main stadium complex will be up today.

NST

Malaysian games / Football: Dollah sees no favourites

2008-05-27T18:17:00.001-07:00

Perak’s football players undergoing training at the Universiti Malaysia Terengganu yesterday. Perak will meet Terengganu today in their Group A match. Pic: HAIRUL ANUAR ABD RAHIM.

SELANGOR coach Dollah Salleh believes it is premature to install anyone as the favourite for the football gold medal at the Malaysia Games when play begins today in Kuala Terengganu.

Being an age-group event (under-23), Dollah feels the field is wide open with the potential for surprises greatly enhanced.

"People think of us as one of the favourites as we have players from the Super League side. The names may make us look good on paper but you must bear in mind that most of them were actually reserves and President's Cup players," Dollah said at the Universiti Malaysia Terengganu training ground in Gong Badak yesterday.

Selangor open their Group D campaign with an evening clash against Kelantan while Kedah, another of the early favourites, meet Sabah in the same group.

Defending champions Terengganu, who are looking to reach the final for the third successive Games, hope to get off to a winning start against Perak in Group A, while Negri Sembilan face Malacca in their quest for gold in Group C.
Dollah does not want his players to get carried away with the favourites tag and is looking no further than the opening match.

"We cannot look too far ahead. We must be focused on our first opponents. We've got a tough group, including Kedah, so we have to tread with caution," added Dollah, who also handles the senior side.

The football tournament kicks off two days ahead of the opening ceremony but has already run into trouble.

One football pitch at the Gong Badak Sports Complex is not ready and has forced the re-scheduling of some matches.

Only the final will be held at the main stadium, the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Gong Badak on June 8, with all other matches being held at the open fields in Gong Badak and the Sultan Ismail Nasiruddin Shah Stadium in Kuala Terengganu.

With the preliminary matches scheduled for the early morning and early evening, the weather, which has been hot and humid in recent days in Kuala Terengganu, could also have a bearing on the matches.

FIXTURES -- Today: Group A: Terengganu v Perak (Sultan Ismail Nasiruddin Shah Stadium, 4.45pm); Group B: Kedah v Sabah (Gong Badak Sports Complex Field A, 4.45pm); Selangor v Kelantan (Gong Badak Sports Complex Field B, 4.45pm); Group C: Negri Sembilan v Malacca (Gong Badak Sports Complex Field A, 8am); Perlis v Federal Territories (Gong Badak Sports Complex Field B, 8am); Group D: Brunei v Johor (Sultan Ismail Nasiruddin Shah Stadium, 8.45pm); Sarawak v Penang (Sultan Ismail Nasiruddin Shah Stadium, 8am).

NST

Malaysian games / Fencing: TAFA has point to prove

2008-05-27T18:16:00.002-07:00

Kamarul (left) and Tengku Dzulkifli make last-minute checks to the scoring equipment at the Gong Badak Indoor Stadium yesterday.

IF there was a need to identify the spirit of the Malaysia Games in this 12th edition of the biennial event, then it would be about the spreading of the sporting culture, the emergence of facilities in host States and, like what the Terengganu Amateur Fencing Association (TAFA) has gone through, the combination of both which results in the beginning of better things to come.

Never in Terengganu's sporting history has fencing ever even been mentioned. Not until a year ago when the need to hold the sport brought about a sudden uprising of the sport in the State.

Within just 14 months after TAFA was formed, it had indentified and produced young fencers, beefed up facilities in the State, got a development programme running and won its first gold medal in an international event. It seemed like a breeze.

Not only that, the association was tasked with preparing the venue and all facilities for the Malaysia Games, something that had never been done in Terengganu before.

"This was made easier thanks to funds made available for the purpose by the Malaysia Games secretariat.
"We were asked by the Terengganu Sports Council to look into the sport and get things going. Then we quickly got things going.

"We set up a protem committee, chaired by Datuk Mohd Rozi Abdul Rahman (Terengganu State executive committee chairman for sports) and got moving," said TAFA development committee chairman Ahmad Kamarul Idrus.

"We brought in some fencers from other States and started to groom our own home-grown talent just for the Malaysia Games."

The State Sports Council was the main backer of the development programme, which also saw them bringing in Indonesian coach Badrul Alam to take charge of the fencers.

"Most of our fencers are based at the Bandar Penawar Sports School right now, but, hopefully, in the future when our own Bukit Nenas Sports School is up and running, they can be based there," said Ahmad Kamarul.

And the programme has seen early success in the Danga Bay International Games in February when the Terengganu women's team epee squad of Che Ku Nur Aida Che Ku Rahim, Nazirah Mohd Adzeman and Nor Fazlin Atan bagged the gold medal, beating other teams from around South East Asia.

Terengganu also bagged two silver and two bronze medals in that Games.

"We're happy to say that in such a short time, we've managed to put up a full squad to compete in all 12 events at the Malaysia Games.

"We have targeted one gold medal from the women's team epee which would be the icing on the cake for all the hard work and the great support from the Terengganu Sports Council," said Ahmad Kamarul.

NST

Hui Lin aims to make up for two forgettable outings in Sukma

2008-05-27T18:16:00.001-07:00