TOKYO − National para swimmer, Muhammad Nur Syaiful Zulkafli, missed the opportunity to advance to the men's 200m freestyle S5 (physical disability) final at the Tokyo Paralympic Games today and set a new Asian record if his participation in the event was not cancelled.
Nur Syaiful, who is making his debut in the prestigious games, finished fifth out of six swimmers in the first heat with a time of 2 minutes 56.78 seconds (s) before getting bad news from the referee, regarding the cancellation of his participation.
The Asian record of 2: 58.11s is held by Thai swimmer Phuchit Aingchaiyaphum, which he set at a meet in Melbourne, Australia last year.
The Sarawak athlete, who did a personal best of 2: 59.01s in London in 2019, said that luck was not on his side after revealing that he had to put a plaster on his left shoulder, due to an injury he suffered since Saturday.
Commenting further, the 26-year-old admitted that his lack of experience caused him not to realise that he had to confirm this (had the plaster on) before the competition to ensure that he could compete.
“Before that, I was told by the doctor that my situation was 50-50 and I had the option to remove the plaster or vice versa.
"For today, the official who checked the equipment such as goggles, jacket and pants, before I went down to the pool also allowed me to perform. However, I was shocked by the referee's decision to cancel my participation, after they told me the use of plasters is strictly prohibited," said the para athlete.
As such, Nur Syaiful, who was unsuccessful in his attempt to protest the decision, will confirm his status, including showing a letter from the medical doctor tomorrow morning, before he competes in the S5 men's 100m freestyle event.
Spanish swimmer, Antoni Ponce Betran, topped the heat with a time of 2 minutes 33.73 seconds (s), followed by Brazil's Daniel de Faria Dias in second place (2: 45.16s) and Dmitrii Cherniaev of the Russian Olympic Committee, who clocked 2: 48.18s to take third place.
The best eight swimmers from the two qualifying heats make the cut for the final, scheduled to take place at 7.52 pm today (6.52pm Malaysian time).
Although in pain, Nur Syaiful, who suffered deformity in both legs after being involved in an accident at the age of 17, stressed that his spirit remained steadfast till the finish line and is determined to rise up from the disappointment in his next event tomorrow.
“I held back my pain because I rely on shoulder movements to swim in the pool. Insya-Allah (God willing), I will do my best tomorrow,” said Nur Syaiful, who has been receiving medical treatment since Monday.
The Paralympian will be competing in the 50m freestyle S5, 100m freestyle S5 and 100m breaststroke SB4 (physical disability) categories.
Apart from Nur Syaiful, Malaysia is also represented by two other swimmers, namely Jamery Siga in the S5 category and Brenda Anellia Larry, who will compete in the S4 category (physical disability).
The Tokyo Paralympic Games, which officially opened last night, ends on September 5. – Bernama, August 25, 2021
