‘Naturalised athletes, sex harassment among why SEA Games target not met’

KUALA LUMPUR – The use of naturalised athletes and sexual harassment against the cycling team are among the reasons that the Malaysian contingent failed to reach its gold-medal target at the recent Cambodia SEA Games.

The National Sports Council’s athlete division director Jefri Ngadirin acknowledged that the nation lost out on 22 targeted gold medals – out of the total aim of 40 golds – in nine sports due to a number of factors.

The men’s cricket team – in peak form and ranked first in Southeast Asia – had to console themselves with three silvers, while the judo team had a real chance of winning a gold medal, he said.

The presence of 13 naturalised players from India and Pakistan in the Cambodian cricket team managed to deny Malaysia the three golds, he said, while in judo, the hosts used a Japanese-born exponent.

“These naturalised athletes are actually allowed by the SEA Sports Federation, there is no restriction. But we hope in the future, we can craft a better programme and strategy,” he said at a media conference on the Malaysian contingent’s performance here today.

Jefri said alleged sexual harassment by a coach against a female mountain biker in March also had a negative impact on the team, as they proved unable to defend the targeted gold medal in the mixed team cross country event, failing even to achieve a podium finish.

“Although we resolved the issue, it had an indirect impact on the team’s performance during the Games, as they could not prepare well, and one of the athletes sustained an injury during competition,” he said.

Tactical mistakes meanwhile cost the men’s indoor hockey team and the men’s jiu-jitsu team their gold medals, while Indonesia’s careful preparations led to them triumphing over the national men’s doubles team in sepak takraw.

Even in badminton, which targeted one gold, Jefri said the difference in ranking between the Malaysian and Indonesian juniors was vast, although several players put up a tough fight.

Dependence on senior athletes and the use of the same athlete in several events also led to failure in swimming, which yielded only one out of an expected three golds, while a change in rules from Muay Thai to Kun Khmer – a traditional Cambodian sport – led to the loss of gold medals in the sport.

Malaysia, however, put on a good show in other combat sports like silat, karate, kickboxing, and taekwondo, as well as diving, which produced a bonus gold.

Meanwhile, chef de mission Datuk Mohd Nasir Ali urged against looking down on the national contingent’s achievement, even though they failed to meet their target.

“We should be aware that the 34 gold medals were won honourably. We need to look at our performance at the Games from two angles: firstly quantitatively, meaning the medal target itself, and qualitatively, in that we managed to uncover new talent.

“This is a wake-up call for everyone. We need to open our eyes and see where we stand in terms of our sports,” he said, adding that the national contingent has actually been on a downward trend since the 2017 Games in Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia emerged as overall champions in 2017, with 145 gold medals, which declined to 56 golds in 2019 in the Philippines), 39 in 2021 in Vietnam, and now 34 in Cambodia. – Bernama, May 19, 2023