The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Hoo-Woon going places after Thai outing
- Pointless finish for Zulfahmi in Silverstone
- Nurulasma rowing to greater heights
| Hoo-Woon going places after Thai outing Posted: 13 Jun 2011 05:38 PM PDT PETALING JAYA: The women's pair of Vivian Hoo-Woon Khe Wei have earned the chance to fight for Olympic qualification with their creditable performance in the Thailand Open last week. The duo defeated top seeds Duanganong Aroonkesorn-Kunchala Voravichitchaikul of Thailand and two other Indonesian national back-up pairs en route to reaching the semi-finals in their first Open tournament since they were reunited as a pair. Vivian and Khe Wei went their separate ways after a runners-up finish in the Asian championships in India in April last year. Doubles chief coach Rexy Mainaky hopes that Vivian-Khe Wei would step up and soon take over from seasoned pair Chin Eei Hui-Wong Pei Tty. He said that Pei Tty-Eei Hui were no longer the force they once were as injuries had taken their toll on them and the London Olympics in August next year could mark their last major assignment. The one-year qualification period for the Olympics began last month and the top 16 pairs at the end of it will make the grade. A country can be represented by two pairs if both are ranked among the top eight and Rexy said that Vivian-Khe Wei would be given the chance to earn qualification. "After discussions with Pang (Cheh Chang, who is the coach of the women's doubles players), we decided to bring them back together to try to aim for the Olympics," he said. "We hope to find another pair to take over from Pei Tty-Eei Hui, who probably have one or two good years of badminton left in them. "Except China, every other country now has a problem finding a good second pair for the women's doubles and relies heavily on the first pair. "We hope Vivian-Khe Wei can bridge the gap and be ready when Pei Tty-Eei Hui retire." The performance of Vivian-Khe Wei in the Thailand Open also augurs well for the Indonesia SEA Games in November where they may feature as the second pair alongside Pei Tty-Eei Hui. The duo certainly fit well into the team as they can play in the mixed doubles as well. "They have no problem combining together but they still need to build up their power and be consistent to become a pair to be reckoned with," said Rexy. Vivian-Khe Wei will not be competing in the Super Series Singapore Open and Eei Hui-Pei Tty are the sole Malaysian women's pair in the tournament beginning tomorrow. The men's pairs in the fray are Lim Khim Wah-Goh Wei Shem, Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari-Ong Soon Hock, Mak Hee Chun-Tan Wee Kiong and former national shuttlers Gan Teik Chai-Tan Bin Shen. With world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei skipping tournament, Wong Choong Hann is the only Malaysian in the main draw while Mohd Hafiz Hashim and Liew Daren have to play in the qualifying rounds today. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Pointless finish for Zulfahmi in Silverstone Posted: 13 Jun 2011 05:38 PM PDT PETALING JAYA: Malaysian motorcycle rider Zulfahmi Khairudin finished out of the points in a wet 125cc race of the Air Asia British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Sunday. Zulfahmi was placed 18th in the race won by German Jonas Folger. It was Folger's first win of the season in the championships. In six legs of the GP125cc world championships thus far, Zulfahmi finished among the points on two occasions. He was placed 10th and 11th in the second and third round in Spain and Portugal respectively. Zulfahmi will resume his campaign in Assen, Holland, in a fortnight's time. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Nurulasma rowing to greater heights Posted: 13 Jun 2011 05:37 PM PDT PETALING JAYA: The late Britain Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill, once said that a pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, but an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. Since taking up canoeing in 2008, Che Ku Nurulasma Ku Abdullah was only good enough as a reserve for the Terengganu team in Sukma. Two Games went by (2008 Terengganu and 2010 Malacca) and not once was she featured in the multiple gold-medal winning team. However, it did not dampen her spirit. She decided to open the door to another opportunity by taking up rowing. Her decision to take up rowing barely two months ago paid off handsomely as she bagged the gold medal in the women's single scull event in the just concluded 14th Sukma. "I knew that my chance to be in the starting line-up for Terengganu canoe team was very slim," said the 18-year-old. "But I never felt like giving up. When the coach asked if I wanted to try out for the rowing team for Sukma, I never gave it a second thought. "Training was the hardest part for me because I had to learn the techniques in just a short time. Fortunately, everything paid off." With the Terengganu government fully backing the rowing team with the purchase of three new boats for the Games, the pint-sized Nurul found that her love for the sport has grown tremendously. "Rowing is a new sport in Malaysia and most of the athletes have problems training because of the lack of facilities," she said. "The price of equipment is also a major factor that limits the participation of more athletes in the sport. I'm glad that rowing was included for the first time in Sukma and I hope it will spur the growth of the sport." Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
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