THE national shooting squad is fielding a line-up of ace shooters to hunt for excellent success at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand this December.
Team manager for the 2025 SEA Games shooting squad, Major (Rtd) Jasni Shaari, said the team’s main hopes for success are being placed on Johnathan Wong, Nur Suryani Mohamed Taibi, and Alia Sazana Azahari, all of whom have extensive experience competing on the international stage, including the Olympic Games and World Championships.
He said a total of 29 shooters will carry the nation’s challenge in three main events involving pistol, rifle, and shotgun in Thailand.
“Undeniably, Vietnam and Indonesia are strong, but they are also apprehensive of us. We have our ace shooters: Johnathan, Nur Suryani, and Alia, all experienced in international shooting.
“So we anticipate many medals, and we can get up to four gold medals,“ he said when met by reporters during the visit of the 2025 SEA Games Chef-de-Mission (CDM) Nurul Huda Abdullah at the shooting squad’s training venue at Gymnasium 3 of the National Sports Council (MSN), Bukit Jalil, here today.
He also described the current line-up of shooters as having the capability to challenge for the overall championship title of the biennial sporting event.
Meanwhile, Alia Sazana is only targeting a gold medal in the 25-meter pistol event, thus hoping to redeem her disappointment of bringing home a silver from the 2021 edition in Hanoi, Vietnam.
“In my heart and my mind is 100 per cent gold, but at the end of the day, we don’t know, but I will fight until the very end, I will not give up,“ said the 33-year-old shooter who will be making her fourth appearance at the SEA Games.
The 2025 SEA Games is scheduled to take place from Dec 9 to 20 in three provinces: Bangkok, Chonburi, and Songkhla. – Bernama
