KUALA LUMPUR: The Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS), through the National Sports Council (NSC), will carry out a post-mortem session on the national athletes’ performance at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games on Nov 14 to ensure a more detailed planning for the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Its Minister, Hannah Yeoh said the session would be held with representatives from the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM), National Sports Associations (NSAs), team coaches, contingent secretariat, the National Sports Institute (NSI) and NSC.
“This session will also involve the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the Economy Ministry as well as representatives from local universities and the media,” she said during the question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat here today.
She was replying to a question from Ramkarpal Singh (PH-Bukit Gelugor), who asked about the measures the government will take to improve the performance of the country’s athletes.
Hannah said that in the Paris Olympics, although 15 athletes made their debut, the achievements of the young athletes have given fresh hope for the Malaysian contingent to shine at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Hannah said this was proven by the success of the national athletes, including 21-year-old weightlifter Aniq Kasdan, in breaking three national records, while Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah, aged 23 and 24, became the first women’s pair to reach the badminton semi-finals, in addition to shuttler Lee Zii Jia winning bronze in the men’s singles event.
Meanwhile, commenting on the effectiveness of the Road to Gold (RTG) Project, she said the programme spans two Olympic cycles, namely the Paris 2024 and LA 2028.
“The RTG Committee has approved a new initiative, namely the RTG Fast Track Programme for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, with six young athletes aged below 25 from squash and diving chosen for the programme.
“We expect the number to increase following the improved performances of several youngsters, such as woman track cyclist Nurul Izzah Izzati Mohd Asri as well as women archers Syaqiera Mashayikh, Ariana Nur Dania Mohamad Zairi and Nurul Azreena Mohamad Fazil, who are ranked among the top 20 in the world,” she said.
She added that the NSC will also focus on new sports like skateboarding, climbing and surfing as these sports are viewed as potential medal contributors.
She said that, in addition, sports that offer multiple medals and weight categories as well as those involving women athletes would also be given attention.
“The ministry, through the NSC, spent about RM20.1 million this year (for the RTG and Podium Programme) for the athletes to qualify and prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“As for the RTG alone, a total of RM13.2 million was spent this year to prepare for the Paris Olympics. The RTG’s accounts are being audited and I will disclose them at the Dewan Rakyat once (the audit) is completed,” she said.
