KUALA LUMPUR – The Youth and Sports Ministry is dedicated to ensuring that every national athlete representing the country in the upcoming Paris Olympic Games in July receives the necessary support, leaving no room for neglect.
Its minister, Hannah Yeoh, underscored her ministry’s commitment to meeting the needs of every athlete, regardless of their status, in the Road to Gold or Podium programmes managed by the National Sports Council (NSC).
Even for professional athletes not included in the programme, their welfare will not be overlooked and Hannah is ready to provide financial assistance to aid them in their final preparations for Paris.
Among the athletes not included in any national sports programme are men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia, women’s singles player Goh Jin Wei, as well as golfers Gavin Green and Ashley Lau, who are seen as having bright prospects to make it to Paris next month.
Unlike badminton, where the qualification period for Paris has ended, golfers will have to wait until June 17 for men and June 24 for women, with only the top 60 golfers in the qualification ranking being eligible for Paris.
“For non-Road to Gold athletes, such as golfers and independent badminton players like Lee Zii Jia, I will meet them if they are in the country. I know they are busy competing overseas.
“But I will look into the financial assistance that NSC can provide for athletes outside the Podium programme who qualify for the Paris Olympic Games and represent Malaysia. We will announce more details later,” said Hannah, when met during the Subang Jaya Buddhist Association’s Senior Citizens Sports programme today.
Currently, a total of 18 athletes from seven sports have already qualified for the Paris Olympic Games.
Among them, some are elite programme athletes, Road to Gold, with the goal of winning medals, including Datuk Azizulhasni Awang, Shah Firdaus Sahrom (track cycling), Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (men’s doubles), Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah (women’s doubles), Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei (mixed doubles), and Mohammad Aniq Kasdan (weightlifting). – June 9, 2024