KUALA LUMPUR — The Malaysian Weightlifting Federation (MWF) anticipates challenges in preparing its athletes for the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand, as they await confirmation from the organising committee on whether the weight categories will follow the existing format or adopt changes introduced by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF).
MWF president Datuk Ayub Rahmat said the decision on the category adjustments, made during a recent meeting in Manama, Bahrain, is expected to be finalised early next year.
“We have yet to receive confirmation from the SEA Games committee. At its meeting in Manama, the IWF recently agreed to revise the weight categories,” Ayub said when contacted by Bernama.
“This poses a challenge for us and our lifters as we need to adapt to these changes.
“We don’t know whether the Thailand SEA Games will maintain the old categories or implement the new ones stipulated by the IWF,” he added.
Meanwhile, Ayub expressed hope that national weightlifter Muhammad Aznil Bidin, who will turn 31 next year, can deliver a strong performance at the biennial event.
Aznil, a double Commonwealth Games gold medalist in 2018 and 2022, transitioned from the 61kg category to the 67kg category earlier this year. However, Ayub urged him to push harder and avoid complacency.
“(At the World Championships in Bahrain), the winner from North Korea lifted 336kg, while Aznil managed 308kg—a 28kg difference.
“While Aznil outperformed competitors from Indonesia, the Philippines, and other nations, we cannot discount the possibility that they might send stronger lifters to the Thailand SEA Games,” Ayub cautioned.
Aznil recently broke his own record, lifting 308kg at the 2024 World Weightlifting Championships in Manama.
This surpassed his previous best of 300kg achieved at the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in Suva, Fiji in September.
At the 2023 Cambodia SEA Games, Nur Syazwani Radzi was the only Malaysian weightlifter to clinch a medal, earning bronze in the women’s 64kg event. — December 9, 2024