Pandelela, Nur Dhabitah won’t be fielded for Cambodia SEA Games

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia Swimming (MS) will only be fielding young divers to represent the country at the 2023 SEA Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, this May.

The elite divers have been left out to give exposure to these younger divers at the international level.

Assistant national coach Datuk Leong Mun Yee said the national diving squad had just started daily training from yesterday at the National Aquatic Centre, Bukit Jalil after the conclusion of the Fina Malaysia Grand Prix diving tournament last November.

She said the 32nd edition of the biennial Games in Cambodia, which will take place from May 5 to May 17, is the closest tournament in the MS calendar, followed by the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan this July and the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China in September, as Fina has yet to release any competition schedule for this year’s calendar.

“The elite divers will not be going to the Cambodia SEA Games, only the backup and younger divers will be sent there. So, it is confirmed that elite divers such as Datuk Pandelela Rinong, Nur Dhabitah Sabri and Ooi Tze Liang will not be sent to Cambodia.

“We (MS) really want to expose the younger divers (to bigger tournaments) because if only the seniors go, then they will not have the opportunity (to showcase their talent),” she said when contacted today.

The former national diver and silver medallist at the 2019 Gwangju World Championships said that only the men’s and women’s individual events will be contested at the prestigious regional Games and that the men’s and women’s synchronised diving events are not on the list.

Mun Yee said among the names of talented young divers touted to fill the slots are Enrique Maccartney Harold and Bertrand Rhodict, who are both 18 years old and will represent the country in the 10m individual platform event.

“So far the names of Enrique Maccartney and Bertrand are indeed on the list for the 10m individual platform and the names for other events will follow later because now we are still in the process of preparing them (younger divers) in the next four to five months,” she said.

In the 31st SEA Games, at the My Dinh Water Sports Stadium, Hanoi, last May, the national diving camp continued to be a powerhouse, emerging as the overall champions with a collection of eight gold, three silver and one bronze medals.

This success saw Malaysia maintain the status quo in diving for the ninth time in a row since 2005. – Bernama, January 4, 2023