Category: Sports

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 (Bernama) — South Korean Kim Pan Gon has brought many changes to the performance of the Harimau Malaya since he was appointed as the head coach of the national football squad in mid-February last year, said Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.

She said this was proven when for the first time since 43 years ago, the national football team managed to qualify on merit for the 2023 Asian Cup in June last year.

“He also managed to prove his ability by leading the team to reach the semi-finals of the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022, thus meeting the target set by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).

“Therefore the appointment of foreign coaches is not a new thing in the world football arena and the appointments made are based on experience and track record to help athletes show their best performance,” she said during the question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat today.

She said this in response to the original question posed by Kalam Salan (PN-Sabak Bernam) who asked if the ministry still believed in the ability of the existing coaches and naturalised players based on the achievements in the AFF Championship and the latest ranking of the Harimau Malaya.

Hannah said the presence of naturalised players in national football is also not a concern because her ministry is always working with the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) to ensure the development of local players is a priority through the National Football Development Programme.

In terms of the current ranking of the Harimau Malaya, she said they are currently ranked 145th in the FIFA rankings, 25th in Asia and fifth in ASEAN.

Meanwhile, replying to Kalam’s supplementary question on whether her ministry plans to hold football leagues again at the district level to enliven activities for youths in the districts, especially in rural areas, Hannah said she would discuss the matter with FAM.

“I believe through the new initiatives in the 2023 Budget, matching grants will enable more sports activities at the grassroots level as proposed,” she said.

When presenting Budget 2023, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced a matching grant fund amounting to RM50 million to encourage private sector sponsorship for sports programmes especially based on unity, the organisation of competitions at the national level and sports reality programmes.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 26 (Bernama) — Coca-Cola and McDonald’s are inviting Malaysians to showcase their shooting skills and score a goal against their Football Fiesta Robot Keeper at the Coke Football Fiesta Tour, happening from now till Dec 4 in front of Lot 10, Bukit Bintang, here.

 

In a joint statement, the parties said the public can participate in the activity by showing a receipt with a Coca-Cola purchased from McDonald’s to stand a chance to win prizes such as Coca-Cola jerseys, caps, and many more.

 

“Participants will have chances to score a goal against the Football Fiesta Robot Keeper with three levels of difficulty. The harder the level, the better the prizes. They will need to score at least one goal to win a prize,” the statement said.

 

 

 

There is the Header Challenge where participants can challenge themselves to jump as high as football star Cristiano Ronaldo’s famous leap of 2.56m to head the ball and stand a chance to win even more prizes besides playing football on PlayStation 5 (PS5) for free and having some fun with the Coke foosball.

 

According to the statement, the public can take photos with fun props at a photo booth before posting them on social media and tag @cocacolamy along with the hashtag #myCokeFiestaTour to receive a free Coke Zero can drink.

 

The Coke Football Fiesta Tour 2022 will also be touring around Malaysia with two Coke Trucks from Nov 18 to Dec 11 which are parked at selected McDonald’s Drive-Thru restaurants from Fridays to Sundays to play games and score some goals at the penalty shoot-out to win prizes.

 

 

 

“Social media users can stand a chance to win a unit of PS5 in their “Juggle for Glory” Instagram filter challenge. In order to be in the running to win the PS5, participants need to get the Instagram filter.

 

“Then, with the filter, the participants must record a video of themselves juggling or heading the items that appear above their heads, upload the video on their feed along with the hashtag #myCokeFiestaTour and tag @cocacolamy,” the statement read.

 

Prizes for this challenge include one unit of PS5, Coke Jerseys and official FIFA jerseys. The contest runs from Nov 18 to Dec 19.

 

Besides that, people can receive a free can of coke when they recycle three empty cans or pet bottles in conjunction with the recycling campaign, which is happening at the roadshow and selected McDonald’s outlets with Coke Trucks.

 

Check https://cokefiestatour.com/ for more updates about the social media contest and meanwhile, follow McDonald’s https://www.facebook.com/My.McDonalds/ to find out about Coke Truck locations.

 

 

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

 

 

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8 (Bernama) — The Ampang-Kuala Lumpur Elevated Highway (AKLEH) and Duta-Ulu Klang Expressway (DUKE) are among the major roads that will be closed in conjunction with the Kuala Lumpur Standard Chartered Marathon (KLSCM) 2022 on Saturday (Nov 12) and Sunday (Nov 13).

 

Kuala Lumpur Police chief Datuk Azmi Abu Kassim said the international-level race, which is expected to draw about 20,000 local and overseas runners, will involve four categories – 5 kilometres (km), 10km, 21km half marathon and 42km full marathon.

 

“The Kuala Lumpur Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department (JSPT) will carry out closures and diversions for roads involved in the race, which will begin at 3 am (Nov 12). The road closure and reopening will be done in stages and the roads are expected to be fully reopened at about 11 am on Sunday,” he said in a statement today.

 

 

 

The roads that will be closed on Saturday (Nov 12) for the 5km and 10km runs are Jalan Raja in Dataran Merdeka from midnight, while Jalan Raja Laut, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR), Jalan Dang Wangi, Jalan Ampang (town centre), Jalan P. Ramlee and Jalan Kuching heading towards the Dato Onn Roundabout will be closed at 5.30 am.

 

Both sides of Jalan Parliament; Jalan Kinabalu heading towards the Dato Onn Roundabout; Jalan Cenderawasih to Jalan Lembah; and the Hishammuddin Roundabout to Jalan Raja will be closed at 6 am.

 

The roads that will be closed at 3 am on Sunday (Nov 13) for the 21km and 42km runs are the Dato Onn Roundabout to Jalan Tun Perak/Jalan Raja Laut; Jalan TAR to Jalan Tun Perak, Jaan Lebuh Ampang to Jalan Tun Perak; Jalan Tun Perak to the Dato Onn Roundabout; and Jalan TAR from Chow Kit to Dataran Merdeka.

 

 

 

Also closed will be Jalan Raja Laut to Jalan Sultan Ismail; Jalan Kuching to Jalan Sultan Ismail; Jalan Sultan Abdul Aziz from Sentul to Jalan TAR; Jalan Pahang from the Pahang Roundabout to Jalan TAR; Jalan Raja Muda Abd Aziz from Chow Kit to the junction of Jalan Raja Abdullah.

 

Also affected are Jalan Raja Abdullah from both directions until Jalan Sultan Ismail; the whole stretch of Jalan Sultan Ismail in both directions; Jalan P. Ramlee to Jalan Pinang and Jalan Raja Chulan; Jalan Bukit Bintang from Jalan Tun Razak; Jalan Raja Chulan to Jalan Bukit Bintang; and Jalan Perak to Jalan P. Ramlee and Jalan Sultan Ismail.

 

He said the roads that will also be closed include Jalan P. Ramlee to Jalan Ampang; Jalan Tun Razak to Jalan Ampang from the Kampung Pandan Roundabout; Jalan Tun Razak to Jalan Ampang from the direction of the National Heart Institute (IJN); Jalan Ampang from the direction of Ampang to KLCC; and Jalan Ampang Hilir to Jalan Ampang and Jelatek.

 

In addition, the routes that will be closed from 3 am are from Jalan Ampang/Jalan Tun Razak junction to the junction of Jalan Jelatek; and Jalan Kinabalu to the Dato Onn Roundabout from the direction of the National Mosque.

 

The AKLEH and DUKE will be closed at 11 pm (Nov 12) while the route that will be closed at 5.30 am (Nov 13) is Jalan Kuching heading to Cheras (vehicles will be diverted towards DUKE heading to Ampang).

 

Other roads are the Segambut Roundabout from Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah and Jalan Tuanku Abd Halim will be closed towards the town centre; Jalan Tun Razak to Jalan Kuching town centre near WTC and Jalan Kinabalu to the Dato Onn Roundabout from the direction of the National Mosque.

 

He advised those taking part in the marathon to use public transportation such as the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Rapid bus.

 

Members of the public who have any enquiries or information can contact the Jalan Tun H.S Lee Traffic Police Station at 03-2071 9999 or call the Kuala Lumpur Police Hotline at 03-2115 9999 or visit the Kuala Lumpur Police Facebook website at https://www.facebook.com/PolisKL and Kuala Lumpur JSPT website at https://www.facebook.com/JsptKL/.

 

 

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 (Bernama) — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob hopes Para shuttler Cheah Liek Hou’s success at the World Para Badminton Championships will serve as an inspiration for other athletes to achieve success in their respective sports at all levels.

 

Liek Hou, 34, had on Sunday clinched his seventh world title after beating Indonesian arch-rival Dheva Anrimusthi 21-14, 21-12 in straight sets during the men’s singles SU5 final of the World Para Badminton Championships held at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan.

 

Ismail Sabri who congratulated Liek Hou on his success, in his Facebook posting today, urged other athletes to strive for excellence and prove that disability does not necessarily be an obstacle to achieve success at the highest level in sports as well in real life.

 

 

 

Liek Hou however, missed out on a double victory and his sixth world doubles title when he and his partner Mohamad Faris Ahmad Azri lost 13-21, 12-21 to Dheva-Hafizh Briliansyah Prawiranegara in the men’s doubles final.

 

Last year, Liek Hou made history by becoming the country’s first Paralympic gold medallist in badminton during the Tokyo Paralympics.

 

Liek Hou has an unparalleled track record in world para badminton as he has also emerged as the men’s singles champion in 2005, 2007, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017 and men’s doubles champion in 2005, 2007, 2011, 2013 and 2015.

 

 

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

 

 

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 3 (Bernama) — Uplifting the standard of living of her family is one of the main goals of Kedah athlete Nurul Farhah Natasya Che Wan who sacrificed her younger days by working tirelessly to carve a name for herself in the sports arena.

 

After five years of relentless training, today, all the sacrifices of the 17-year-old bore fruit when she clinched her first gold medal in the Malaysian Para Games (Para Sukma) 2022 at the National Sports Council (MSN) Mini Stadium in Bukit Jalil, here.

 

Although this edition is her debut, the Langkawi-born athlete had no problems showing her best performance to top the F12 (visual impairment) Women’s Long Jump event with a distance of 4.35 metres (m).

 

 

 

“My family do not have an easy life, I’m not very good at studies, so what I’m good at is sports. My main goal is to represent Malaysia and change the fate of my family.

 

“I want to buy a house, a car and give money to my mother and father. I love them. For the sake of success I am willing to do anything,” she said, holding back tears when met by Bernama after the medal presentation ceremony.

 

The gold medal she won was also the opening gold of the Para Sukma 2022 athletics competition.

 

Meanwhile, her coach Mohd Fahmi Adnan said the youngest of six siblings was a very disciplined athlete and this was proven as she never skipped a training session during the five years under his guidance.

 

“In five years she has never missed a day (of training), she is an athlete who never says no, she is an obedient person. Even recently at the KOPK (Special Education Athletics Championships) at the national level, she was selected as the best athlete in the vision impaired category,” he said.

 

According to Mohd Fahmi, today’s target was to break the championship record of 4.38m, but the slippery track surface made it difficult for Nurul Farhah, whose personal best is 4.40m.

 

He hopes that Nurul Farhah’s achievement would attract the attention of MSN to absorb her to participate in the national camp to help further develop her talents ahead of the 2023 ASEAN Para Games in Cambodia and the 2022 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China, next year.

 

The silver medal of the event was won by Solehah Muzdaliefah Mustafa from Terengganu who did 3.63m, while Johor athlete Nur Arinah Nor Asibah took the bronze after recording 3.25m.

 

 

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

 

KUANTAN, July 6 (Bernama) — The Youth and Sports Ministry has till now, allocated almost RM60 million for the construction and maintenance of sports facilities in Pahang, said its deputy minister, Datuk Seri Ti Lian Ker.

He said the maintenance work on buildings included Darul Makmur Stadium; Rompin and Maran Rakan Muda Sports Complexes; Pekan Sports Complex and Pelanggai Community Sports Complex in Bentong, besides building the State Youth and Sports Complex, here.

“When all the work is completed, we hope that more among the local communities will be involved in sports activities,” he said at a media conference, here, today with Kuantan mayor, Datuk Hamdan Hussin also present.

On the Pahang State Youth and Sports Complex, Ti said the RM30 million project started last year and was expected to be completed in August next year.

It will include facilities for people with disabilities, a football field, running track, gymnasium, multipurpose courts, a hostel, auditorium and hall.

“In using public facilities, the cost of repairing any damage done will be borne by the government, so I hope the public will help take good care of these facilities for the benefit of all,” Ti said.

He also announced the ministry’s approval for a sum of RM500,000 for the maintenance and upgrading work on the Wisma Belia Hockey Stadium in Indera Mahkota, here.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

BANGI, June 15 (Bernama) — The government is considering rewarding the national football team and holding a celebration over their qualification to the 2023 Asian Cup finals, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Yaakob said.

He said the matter will be jointly discussed with the Youth and Sports Ministry and the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) soon.

“Insya-Allah, I will be discussing this with Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu and also with FAM.

“It (discussions) will be about celebrating (Malaysia’s qualification) or any form of contribution that we can give… we will discuss this,” he told reporters after attending the 2022 Malaysian Youth Parliament (PBM) sitting here today.

Ismail Sabri, meanwhile, also hoped that the Harimau Malaya squad will now go on to perform their best and make their mark at the 2023 Asian Cup.

“We have only passed the first test, the bigger challenge will be at the Asian Cup and to get some good results. I hope this fighting spirit shown will continue to restore Malaysia’s standing in international football, especially in Asia,” he said.

Malaysia ended more than four decades of wait when they qualified on merit for the Asian Cup after thrashing Bangladesh 4-1 in the last match of Group E qualifiers at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium here last night.

Malaysia ended the qualifying stage with six points to finish behind group champions Bahrain thus booking their ticket to the prestigious competition as one of the best five runners-up.

The last time Malaysia made an appearance in the Asian Cup finals was in the 2007 edition when they co-hosted the tournament, but it had been more than 40 years of failing to advance (to the finals) on merit since the 1980 edition in Kuwait.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency