KUALA LUMPUR – National cueists Lim Kok Leong and Moh Keen Ho are eligible to get training allowance if they choose to be part of the National Sports Council (NSC) full-time training programme.
However, NSC athletes division director Jefri Ngadirin said the athletes have been offered to join the programme but declined the offer due to work commitment.
“We understand that they have their own full-time jobs and business, so they could not commit to the full-time training (in NSC).
“That is mainly the issue faced by the (snooker and billiard) sport association,” Jefri said when met at the 2023 Cambodia SEA Games Phase 1 Athletes Assembly here today.
Despite that, Jefri added that the NSC has never sidelined the Malaysian Snooker and Billiard Federation.
He said the council has been providing the association funding since 2017 to help them compete at the 2017 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, 2019 SEA Games in Manila and most recently the 2022 World Amateur Snooker Championship in Antalya, Turkiye.
Kok Leong created history on Friday when he became the country’s first cueist to win the championship.
The 27-year-old and his partner at the World Men’s Team Snooker Championships, Moh Keen Ho, were also the only Malaysian duo to win the title twice, which was held in Kuala Lumpur last month.
Following their success, Jefri also noted that they will be receiving the National Sports Incentive Scheme that they deserved. – The Vibes, November 16, 2022
