Zaidatul Targets 2025 SEA Games Despite Injury, Job
The 32-year-old athlete, also known as 'Adik', said her focus now is on recovering from a ligament injury in her foot, sustained while competing at the Asian Track and Field (ATF) Championships in Gumi, South Korea, in May, as she works towards qualifying for the biennial Games.
'It's a bit challenging because Adik is already working, so the recovery process is taking a bit more time.
'I didn't even realise I had the injury during the competition. It was only after returning home that I found out there was a tear in my foot ligament, but I've continued training slowly,' she said when met recently.
She also said she is preparing to compete in the upcoming Malaysia Open as part of her build-up to the 2025 SEA Games.
'For now, my main focus is, of course, the Malaysia Open because I want to qualify for the SEA Games, and more importantly, I want to improve my time compared to what I ran in Korea.
'Actually, based on my top 3 timing, I should have already qualified. But we still want to see how things go towards the end, especially in the final stages before the selection is made,' said Zaidatul, who was recently appointed an athletics coach at SSBJ.
She also expressed hope that the return of sprint coach Mohd Poad Kassim to the national squad would help her maintain consistency.
'As an athlete, we naturally hope to have a coach by our side for motivation. As sprinters, there are technical aspects that need to be refined, and sometimes we don't even realise the mistakes we're making — only an experienced coach can detect and correct them,' she said.
-- BERNAMA
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Borneo Post
30 minutes ago
- Borneo Post
Clement strikes gold for Malaysia at Asian Taolu Cup in China
WFM president Chong Kim Fatt gives the thumbs-up for Ting's golden feat. KUCHING (July 7): The Wushu Federation of Sarawak (WFS) has hailed the outstanding performance of national wushu exponent Clement Ting Su Wei who delivered Malaysia's sole gold medal at the inaugural Taolu Asian Cup held in Songyuan, Jilin, China from July 5-6. The 27-year-old Ting, who hails from Sibu, clinched the top spot in the men's gunshu event on the final day of the tpournament, scoring 9.676 points to edge out teammate Danish Aizad Firdaus Chua (9.573) and the athlete from Hong Kong China (9.663). The historic gold marked a major breakthrough for Malaysia which finished fifth overall in the medal tally with one gold, seven silver and three bronze medals. China dominated the two-day competition with a powerful showing of 10 gold and one silver followed by Hong Kong China (4-4-1) and Singapore (2-1-2). 'We are absolutely delighted and proud of Clement's achievement on the Asian stage. He has not only brought glory to Sarawak but also made the nation proud,' said WFS deputy president James Ting when contacted by The Borneo Post. 'His dedication and perseverance are truly commendable, and we hope this gold medal will be the first of many more in his international journey, including the upcoming SEA Games.' James also highlighted Sarawak's consistent contribution to the national wushu scene, naming a string of former and current national athletes from the state such as Loh Jack Chang, Diana Bong, Pui Fook Chien, Audrey Chan, Thian Ai Ling, Choo Ee Wei, Kimberly Goh and Wee Jun Jie. Touching on broader issues in national sports development, James expressed concern over recent policy shifts in athlete recruitment under the National Sports Council (NSC). 'I sincerely hope the Wushu Federation of Malaysia (WFM) will always select athletes based on merit and performance, regardless of region,' he said. He also reiterated the call for the establishment of a second national wushu training base in Kuching to better accommodate and develop talents from East Malaysia. 'With the world-class Sarawak Wushu and Competition Centre in Petra Jaya, we already have the infrastructure to host and train elite national athletes. It would be a strategic move to fully utilise this facility,' he proposed. Clement Ting Su Wei lead Taolu Asian Cup
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Fencing-French Olympic fencer cleared as CAS accepts positive test linked to kissing partner
Paris 2024 Olympics - Fencing - Women's Foil Team Classifications 5-8 - Grand Palais, Paris, France - August 01, 2024. Ysaora Thibus of France is seen during the bout against China. REUTERS/Albert Gea (Reuters) -The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has overturned French Olympic fencer Ysaora Thibus's four-year suspension for doping, ruling that her positive test for a banned substance was caused by kissing her then-boyfriend, American fencer Race Imboden. Thibus, silver medallist in team foil at the Tokyo Games, had tested positive for ostarine, a prohibited muscle-building substance, during a competition in Paris in January 2024. However, CAS concluded there was no intentional wrongdoing, finding it scientifically plausible that repeated kissing over several days with Olympic medallist Imboden — who was taking ostarine at the time — led to accidental contamination. The court dismissed an appeal from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which had sought a four-year suspension. The sport's top court instead upheld a previous ruling from the International Fencing Federation's doping disciplinary tribunal (DDT) that had already cleared Thibus of any fault. "The CAS Panel ruled that the antidoping rule violation for the presence of ostarine was not intentional, and that it is not questionable that Ms Thibus bears no fault or negligence," the court said in a statement. "The DDT decision is upheld and the appeal is dismissed." The case has drawn comparisons to an incident in 2009 involving French tennis player Richard Gasquet, who was exonerated after arguing that he had tested positive for cocaine after kissing someone at a nightclub. Thibus was able to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics following the initial DDT ruling, finishing fifth in the team foil event on home soil. (Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City; editing by Clare Fallon)
The Star
11 hours ago
- The Star
Former swimmer Nurul Huda to lead SEA Games contingent as CDM
New chef de mission Nurul Huda Abdullah . FAIHAN GHANI/The Star. KUALA LUMPUR: Former national swimming queen Nurul Huda Abdullah has been appointed as Malaysia's chef de mission (CDM) to the SEA Games in Thailand from Dec 9-20. Nurul, who was recently elected Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) vice president, will be assisted by three deputy CDM namely Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) secretary-general Datuk Kenny Goh, former sprint ace Nazmizan Muhammad and former hockey player Jivan Mohan. "The selection of the chef de mission and deputy chefs de mission was made in collaboration with the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the National Sports Council to ensure the most capable and experienced leaders guide the Malaysian Contingent to success,' according to a statement issued by OCM on July 7 (Monday). Nurul represented Malaysia at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games and holds the record for the most medals won by a Malaysian athlete at the SEA Games with an incredible total of 32 medals, comprising 22 gold, 8 silver and 2 bronze across three consecutive editions in 1985, 1987 and 1989. She remains the first and only Malaysian female swimmer to have won a medal at the Asian Games, with an outstanding achievement of two silver and two bronze medals at the 10th Asian Games in Seoul 1986. Nurul followed the footsteps of former track queen Datuk Marina Chin, who served as CDM at the 2017 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games. - Bernama
