Skip to main content

Rizal to remain focused on training

Arnaz M. Khairul

HE'S at the centre of a dilemma, but these are issues Rizal Tisin wishes to evade and remain on track towards becoming the world's fastest man over one kilometre on a bike.

Talk of him being moved into the pursuit team has been rife since the 1km time trial was removed from the Guangzhou Asian Games programme next year, but the 25-year-old is standing firm.

"I really hope the MNCF (Malaysian National Cycling Federation) will fight to get the event reinstated and I hope they do get it reinstated," said Rizal.

But Rizal, albeit distraught and overwhelmed by emotion at the time the Guangzhou Asian Games organising committee announced the decision and when they rejected a preliminary appeal by Malaysia, is not going anywhere for the moment.

   Rizal won the countryā€™s first ever World Championships medal in Pruskow, Poland in April, a bronze in the 1km time trial.
Rizal won the countryā€™s first ever World Championships medal in Pruskow, Poland in April, a bronze in the 1km time trial.


"The 1km time trial is still the centre of my focus. It is still in the World Championships and in the Commonwealth Games, which is another big target for me next year," said Rizal.

"I want so much for it to be in the Asian Games because I want to end our country's wait for a cycling gold medal there. And we've never had a medal on the track at the Commonwealth Games."

Malaysia's last Asian Games gold medals in cycling came through Daud Ibrahim and Ng Joo Ngan in the 1970 Games in Bangkok.

The country's only ever cycling medal in the Commonwealth Games was a silver through Nor Effandy Rosli in the road race in the 1998 Games in Kuala Lumpur.

"This is why I don't want to say I'm moving to other events. There's still a lot to achieve in the 1km time trial. We don't know how it will be in the Commonwealth Games if (Britain's) Chris Hoy is there, but I think I have a chance for even a gold medal there," said Rizal.

Rizal won the country's first ever World Championships medal in Pruskow, Poland in April, a bronze in the 1km time trial, clocking an Asian record of 1:01.658s in the process.

"My first target is to qualify for next year's World Championships. I start my World Cup campaign in Cali, Colombia in December and will move on from there. I'll return to the Melbourne training camp after Hari Raya," said Rizal.

Head coach John Beasley has also enough confidence in Rizal's ability to moot a possible attempt at altitude for a crack at Arnaud Tournant's world record of 58.875s, set in La Paz, Bolivia in 2001.

The MNCF has, according to track committee chairman Datuk Naim Mohamad, proceeded with a second string of appeals, submitted to the Asian Cycling Confederation (ACC) and International Cycling Union (UCI).


As yet, the Guangzhou Asian Games organising committee remains adamant at excluding the 1km time trial, but has included the women's 500m time trial. Both are not Olympic events.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Ex-coach's jail sentence cut to a year

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal yesterday sentenced former athletics coach C. Ramanathan to 12 months' jail for molesting two junior athletes 19 years ago. A three-man bench led by Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus unanimously dismissed Ramanathan's appeal against conviction, but varied the jail sentence of four years to a year, which was to run concurrently. Following yesterday's ruling, Ramanathan, 75, a former teacher, walked out a free man as he had served 10 months in Kajang Prison. Convicts get one-third remission for good behaviour while in prison. However, he will lose his pension. Hishamudin, who sat with Datuk Abdul Wahab Patail and Datuk Linton Albert, said the court found no merit to overturn the conviction. "However, in reducing the sentence, we considered Ramanathan's age and the long years the appeal has taken." Deputy public prosecutor Awang Armadajaya Awang Mahmud submitted that then High Court judge Tan Sri Abdull Hamid E...

Govt Always Gives Emphasis To Sporting Culture, Says PM

KUALA TERENGGANU, May 29 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badaw i 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,...

Indonesia Choose Komodo Dragon As SEA Games Mascot

KUALA LUMPUR, April 26 (Bernama) -- Host for the 26th SEA Games, Indonesia has chosen the Komodo dragon as mascot for the 2011 Games which will be held in Jakarta and Palembang from Nov 11 to 25. The Indonesia SEA Games Organizing Committee (Inasoc), was qouted by Jakarta Post as saying that a pair of Komodo dragons, a male (Modo) and a female (Modi), were chosen in recognition of the Republic's conservation efforts to protect the dwindling number of the rare lizard. Modo and Modi were unveiled last night at a function in Jakarta, to mark the 200-day countdown before the games open on Nov 11 in Palembang. The Komodo dragons, the largest lizard in the world, only live on the Indonesian islands of Komodo in Flores, East Nusa Tenggara. On Jan 15, Inasoc unveiled its logo, a Garuda eagle, to symbolize the power and grandeur of Indonesia. Indonesia dominated the Games between 1977, when it first competed, and 1997, failing to top the medal charts only twice in that p...