KUALA LUMPUR – Can elite national diver Nur Dhabitah Sabri still make it to the Paris Olympics despite suffering a triceps injury?
Nur Dhabitah failed to qualify for the synchronised 10-metre platform alongside Datuk Pandelela Rinong, who will miss her first Olympics since Beijing in 2008.
Malaysia Swimming Federation (MS) technical director Bryan Nickson Lomas said that Nur Dhabitah still has two more events in her quest for a ticket to the Olympics, namely the 3m springboard and synchronised 3m springboard event with Wendy Ng.
“Her recovery is actually on track, and we acknowledge that the athletes did feel a bit of pressure even though the preparations before that were all smooth,” he told Bernama today.
At the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Qatar early this morning, Nur Dhabitah and Pandelela finished in 12th place out of 16 diving pairs, with a total score of 240.06 points in the synchronised 10m platform.
In order to qualify for the Olympics, Nur Dhabitah-Pandela needed to finish in the top four at the competition.
Lomas said the national diving squad’s preparation went smoothly, with them ‘camping’ for two months in China, but some matters out of their control happened upon arrival in Qatar.
“We were hoping to do better, but there were some constraints due to Dhabitah’s injury.”
On Sunday, Pandelela only managed to secure 29th place with 231.15 points, trailing 204.05 points behind world champion Chen Yuxi (435.20 points) in the qualification round of the 10m individual platform event in Doha.
So far, young diver Bertrand Rhodict Lises has emerged as the sole Malaysian diver to qualify on merit for this year’s Olympic Games.
The athlete from Sarawak will be making his Olympic debut after advancing to the final of the men’s 10m individual platform event and being among the top 12 divers at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan.
Meanwhile, MS secretary-general Andy Low believes luck did not favour the nation’s diving queen Pandelela for her fifth consecutive Olympics appearance at the Paris games, scheduled from July 26 to August 11.
Pandelela had previously competed in four Olympics, namely Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio 2016, and Tokyo 2020.
Andy said there is no need to point fingers at anyone, considering that the best preparations have been made by all relevant parties to help prepare the Olympic silver medalist from London 2012 for the past seven months.
“There was no luck (for Pandelela) because we had made the best preparations. Whatever was needed (for Pandelela), we had done it, and the doctor had also treated her injury well.
“… and when we fail, there’s no need for excuses, just acknowledge that we failed. Who wants to hear excuses anyway? So, whether we say sorry for failing, or we will try our best next time. I think all divers have tried their best. What else can be said,” he said
Regarding the lacklustre performance of the national diving squad as a whole at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Andy said they would conduct a post-mortem to determine what exactly happened in Qatar.
“We need to conduct a little post-mortem (after the competition) to understand what really happened. Everyone is complaining, investments have been made, but there are no results,” he said. – February 7, 2024