Hangzhou: teenager Asnawi sails away with M’sia’s first medal

HANGZHOU – Teenage sailor Asnawi Iqbal Adam ended Malaysia’s wait for a first medal in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games when he delivered a bronze on the third day of the quadrennial Games.

The 17-year-old did just that when he came in third in the men's ILCA 4 event at the Ningbo Xiangshan Sailing Centre, about 170 kilometres (km) from here.

Although Asnawi could only finish ninth in the 11th – and final – race today, he managed to retain third spot with 42 penalty points.

Thailand's Weka Bhanubandh (13 penalty points) took gold while Singapore's Isaac Goh (21 penalty points) settled for silver.

A delighted but pleasantly surprised Asnawi, who described it as his best achievement in sports, is set to switch to the ILCA 6 or ILCA 7 event when he exceeds the 17-year-old age limit for the ILCA 4 event.

“Although I only got bronze, I must admit that there is a big gap (in standard) between me and the other sailors. Although the national team training in Langkawi is quite good, it would be better if we can train overseas as we can go further,” he said when contacted.

The sailing team delivered a second surprise when Tengku Nurani Ezaty Tengku Khairudeen contributed another bronze in the women's Windsurfing RS:X event.

The 19-year-old got her hands on the bronze medal with 43 penalty points after completing 14 races, finishing behind Thailand’s Siripon Kaewduang-Ngam (18 penalty points), who clinched gold after ending up with bronze in the 2014 and 2018 editions, and Hong Kong's  Ngai Wai Yan (20 penalty points).

Muhammad Izzudin Abdul Rani, meanwhile, narrowly missed out on a podium finish in the men's RS:X event after finishing fourth with 54 penalty points, just two more than eventual bronze medallist Eabad Ali of India.

South Korean Cho Won-woo took gold and Thailand's Natthaphong Phonoppharat the silver.

The partnership of Muhammad Fauzi Kaman Shah-Juni Karimah Noor Jamali also ended up empty-handed in the mixed international 470 event after finishing fifth with 49 points following the completion of all 12 races.

Japan’s Keiju Okada-Miho Yoshioka (14 penalty points) bagged gold, China's Dong Wenju-Wang Jingsa (21 penalty points) took silver and South Korea’s Kim Jia-Cho Sung Min (40 penalty points) settled for bronze.

Meanwhile, Nur Shazrin Mohamad Latif should clinch gold in the women’s ILCA 6 event, and a place in the 2024 Paris Olympics, if she can finish among the top five and not make any major mistakes in tomorrow's medal round, which offers double the points.

After 11 races, so far, the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang edition bronze medallist continues to be atop the standings with 25 penalty points, 12 points ahead of Hong Kong’s Stephanie Norton (37 penalty points) and Singapore's Victoria Chan Jing Hua (38 penalty points). – Bernama, September 26, 2023