Sivasangari, Man-Tee get into RTG for first time as final list released
PUTRAJAYA: Thirteen athletes have committed to the Road to Gold (RTG) programme, Malaysia's elite initiative aimed at delivering the nation's first-ever Olympic gold medal at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Leading the line-up are eight shuttlers led by two-time Olympic bronze medallists Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik.
Also named are women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah, mixed doubles duo Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei, and men's doubles pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun, who are making their debut in the programme.
The remaining five athletes are weightlifter Mohd Aniq Kasdan, track cyclists Mohd Shah Firdaus Sahrom and Nurul Izzah Izzati Asri, and squash player S. Sivasangari.
Meanwhile top male squash player Ng Eain Yow has been placed in the fast-track list alongside three women archers – Ariana Nur Dania, Syaqiera Mashayikh and Nurul Azreena Fazil.
World No. 1 men's doubles pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani and mixed pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie, who compete independently, have yet to confirm their participation.
Men's singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia is the only athlete to decline the offer, citing personal reasons.
All confirmed athletes signed their RTG contracts in Putrajaya on Tuesday (June 10), witnessed by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh, who also chairs the RTG committee.
'I hope that with all the additional support provided, it will help raise their performance and, at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, bring Malaysia closer to winning its first Olympic gold medal,' said Hannah.
'I also hope all the athletes will remain in the RTG programme and continue to improve. Currently, their KPI (key perfomance index) is to be in the top 10, but in the coming years, we want to see that progress to the top eight, and eventually the top four,' she said during a press conference.
All 13 athletes in the programme will not only receive a monthly allowance but, more importantly, will also benefit from comprehensive support services aimed at boosting their performance as they gear up to become serious medal contenders at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
6 hours ago
- The Star
China takes recurve women's team silver at Archery World Cup
MADRID, July 13 (Xinhua) -- China fell 6-2 to South Korea in the recurve women's team final, while Li Jiaman secured an individual bronze medal as Stage 4 of the 2025 Archery World Cup concluded here on Sunday. Ranked second behind South Korea in the qualification round, China's team, consisting of Li, Hai Ligan, Zhu Jingyi and Bao Jingyi, defeated Georgia, Italy and Chinese Taipei to reach the final against South Korea. In the final, South Korea's trio of An San, Lim Si-hyeon and Kang Chae-young claimed the opening set 57-56. The two teams then split the next two sets, tying 57-57 and 56-56. In a tightly contested fourth set where no archer from either side scored below a 9, a single extra 10 gave South Korea the edge at 56-55, sealing the set and the match 6-2. In the women's individual event, Li was defeated by Kang 6-2 in the semifinals but rebounded to beat Germany's Michelle Kroppen by the same score to take the bronze. Kang went on to defeat 17-year-old Hsu Hsin-tzu of Chinese Taipei 6-5 in a shootoff to claim the gold. In the men's competitions, France won its first World Cup gold in recurve team since 2017 with a 6-2 victory over the United States. After having fallen to France in the semifinals, reigning Olympic champion South Korea overcame Japan 6-2 to earn the bronze. France's Baptiste Addis, 18, was denied a second gold medal after being swept 6-0 by Mexico's Matias Grande in the men's individual final. South Korea's Kim Je-deok claimed the bronze. The United States defeated South Korea 5-3 in the mixed team final, powered by a crucial second-set win. The Archery World Cup now heads to Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province, in October.
New Straits Times
11 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Trump the football fan: US president to attend Fifa club final
BEDMINSTER, United States: Donald Trump will on Sunday showcase his unexpected attachment to a sport in which "America First" remains a dream, for now. The US president is attending the final of the newly expanded Fifa Club World Cup in his latest use of the beautiful game as a soft power political weapon. His appearance at the MetLife stadium in New Jersey, where Paris Saint-Germain face Chelsea, is very much a trial run for the World Cup final, which will take place in the same stadium next year. Trump has made it clear he sees both tournaments, as well as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, as showpieces for what he calls the "Golden Age of America" during his second term. The billionaire Republican's close friendship with Fifa president Gianni Infantino, a frequent visitor to the White House, is also a factor in his appearance. Trump has kept the Club World Cup trophy next to his desk in the Oval Office since Infantino dropped by in March. But Trump's embrace of football, or soccer as he would say, is also personal. The president's 19-year-old son Barron is a fan, as Infantino pointed out in a press conference at Fifa's new office in Trump Tower in New York on Saturday. Asked if Trump liked the game, Infantino replied: "Well I think he does. In his first term as president of the United States there was a soccer goal in the garden of the White House. "He then explained to me that his son loved football, and that he loved the game. And of course when you are a parent, you love what your children love, so I think that he loves it." As a student at the New York Military Academy, Trump himself also reportedly played the game for a season. Trump's apparent fondness for football may seem unusual for a country where, despite growing popularity, the sport still lags behind American football, basketball and baseball. The former reality TV star has, however, always had an eye for popularity, power and influence. And football in its own way brings all three. Trump pointed out when Infantino visited the White House in March that the United States won the right to host the 2026 World Cup in 2018, during his first term as president. He said he was "so sad" because he assumed he would not be president when the tournament came around -- but his 2020 election loss meant that he would after all. The Fifa Club World Cup has meanwhile proved more successful than its critics predicted, with around 2.5 million people attending games across the country and some gripping games. Infantino, who is no stranger to dealing with hard-nosed leaders around the world, thanked Trump for his support on Saturday. He said Trump "embraced immediately the importance of the Fifa Club World Cup, and of course of the World Cup next year." Infantino also joked that Trump "certainly loves as well the trophy" -- whose gold-plated curves match the gilded makeover that the president has given the Oval Office. But in typical form Trump has also mixed political controversy with his football fandom. Hosting Italian side Juventus in the Oval Office in June, he delivered a diatribe on transgender people in sports before asking the players: "Could a woman make your team, fellas?" Most of the players looked bemused before Juventus general manager Damien Comolli replied: "We have a very good women's team." "He's being very diplomatic," said Trump. Trump's hardline immigration crackdown -- part of his "America First" policy -- has meanwhile sparked fears that football fans will be discouraged from coming to the United States.
The Star
13 hours ago
- The Star
Confidence on the line as Tang Jie-Ee Wei set to face All-England champs early
National mixed doubles shuttlers Toh Ee Wei and Chen Tang Jie. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star PETALING JAYA: Mixed doubles shuttlers Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei need a big win to restore confidence as the country's top pair. And they will get a chance to do it in the Japan Open starting tomorrow in Tokyo as the are likely to take on All-England champions Guo Xinwa-Chen Fanghui of China as early as the second round. Tang Jie-Ee Wei have beaten Xinwa-Fanghui in their past meetings in the China Masters and Hong Kong Open last year but the former had showed marked improvement en route to stunning teammates Feng Yanzhe-Wei Yaxin to capture the biggest title in their careers so far in the All-England in Birmingham in March. Doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky believes that a good showing in Japan will boost the pair's confidence. "Tang Jie-Ee Wei's preparations have been good and they are ready for this tournament," said Rexy. "They could face the All-England champions in the second round and this will be a tough challenge for them but if they can overcome this pair, it will give them a confidence boost." The world No. 4 Tang Jie-Ee Wei should have no problems getting past Canada's scratch pair Kevin Lee-Josephine Wu in the first round while Xinwa-Fanghui are also the favourites in their opening match against Indonesia's world No. 14 Jafar Hidayatullah-Felisha Pasaribu. Tang Jie-Ee Wei are still searching for their best form and have not reached any finals so far this year. Their best results together this year were semi-final finishes in the Opens in Malaysia, India and Indonesia. Tang Jie-Ee Wei split up at the end of March due to a strained relationship before resolving their differences and reuniting quickly. The other Malaysian mixed doubles pair in the fray are world No. 6 Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie, world No. 13 Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin and world No. 34 Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien. Soon Huat-Shevon will open their campaign against Thailand's Ruttanapak Oupthong-Jhenicha Sudjaipraparat while Pang Ron-Su Yin will play Americans Presley Smith-Jennie Gai. Homesters Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara stand in the way of Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien.
