KOTA BARU – Kelantan will build a shariah-compliant aquatic centre soon as preparations to host the 22nd Malaysia Games (Sukma) in 2026.
Kelantan Youth, Sports and Non-Governmental Organisations committee chairman Wan Roslan Wan Hamat said more than RM20 million has been allocated to build the aquatic centre at the Islamic City Centre in Tiong.
“The construction of the complex will follow the specifications for swimming events involving various categories. The competition for men and women will be shariah-compliant,” he told reporters today.
He added that Kelantan are eyeing swimming gold medals at Sukma and will be relying on 20 young swimmers currently training by the As-Sibahah academy.
The athletes, 10 boys and 10 girls, underwent basic training for six months with the academy and now are being managed by the state sports council for in-depth training to improve their skills.
"We chose these 13-year-olds from the academy as we have six years to train them to achieve our gold medal target in swimming.”
All the swimmers were first-round picks overseen by the state Youth and Sports secretariat last year, comprising students from SM Yayasan Islam Kelantan around the district.
“We want the first products from this shariah-compliant swimming academy to give their best in training and be disciplined so they can deliver gold medals for the state.” – Bernama, September 30, 2021
