Set for the Asiad: Malaysian aquatics team members Foo Jian Beng (left) and Christina Loh arriving in Guangzhou Tuesday.
FIFTEEN-year-old Ian James Barr has lofty ambitions – he wants to be a better backstroke swimmer than his idol, Olympian Lim Keng Liat.
The Form Three student of Methodist Boys School in Kuala Lumpur will be competing in six events in the Guangzhou Asian Games and three of them are backstroke events – 50m, 100m and 200m.
He will also feature in the 200m and 400m individual medleys and the 4x100m medley.
Ian, who will be making his Asiad debut, said that he wants to be a better swimmer than Keng Liat, who featured in three Olympics – Atlanta (1996), Sydney (2000) and Athens (2004).
Sabahan Keng Liat became the first Malaysian to bag an Asiad gold medal when he won the 100m backstroke in Bangkok in 1998.
He also won a silver in the 200m backstroke. Keng Liat also made history when he became the first national swimmer to win the silver medal in the 50m backstroke in the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, where he also took the bronze medal in the 100m backstroke.
Keng Liat is now coaching his home state and he was also the chef-de-mission of the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore in August.
Ian said that “Keng Liat has been a great inspiration to my swimming career.
“Keng Liat was a great backstroke swimmer who has done the country proud in the Commonwealth Games.
“I will train much harder to win honours in the Commonwealth Games and also in the Olympics in 2016,” said Ian, who will face a hectic schedule in Guangzhou.
The youngster will compete in six events in six days, sparking fears that it may take a toll on his performance.
But the youngster was cool about the whole thing.
“Although I will face a hectic schedule, I will still go all out to give my best in all the events,” said Ian, who made a great impact in his first Delhi Commonwealth Games last month.
“This is my first Asian Games and I will be more than happy if I can reach the semi-finals.
“Besides doing well in the backstroke events, I also hope to rewrite my own national record in the 200m individual medley.”
He clocked a personal best of 2:07.22 in New Delhi to break the 13-year-old national record of 2:07.80 set by Wan Azlan Abdullah at the 1997 Jakarta SEA Games.
Ian is among 12 swimmers who arrived in Guangzhou yesterday with coach Paul Birmingham of Australia.
The swimming competition starts on Saturday but Malaysia are not expected to win any medals.
The Form Three student of Methodist Boys School in Kuala Lumpur will be competing in six events in the Guangzhou Asian Games and three of them are backstroke events – 50m, 100m and 200m.
He will also feature in the 200m and 400m individual medleys and the 4x100m medley.
Ian, who will be making his Asiad debut, said that he wants to be a better swimmer than Keng Liat, who featured in three Olympics – Atlanta (1996), Sydney (2000) and Athens (2004).
Sabahan Keng Liat became the first Malaysian to bag an Asiad gold medal when he won the 100m backstroke in Bangkok in 1998.
He also won a silver in the 200m backstroke. Keng Liat also made history when he became the first national swimmer to win the silver medal in the 50m backstroke in the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, where he also took the bronze medal in the 100m backstroke.
Keng Liat is now coaching his home state and he was also the chef-de-mission of the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore in August.
Ian said that “Keng Liat has been a great inspiration to my swimming career.
“Keng Liat was a great backstroke swimmer who has done the country proud in the Commonwealth Games.
“I will train much harder to win honours in the Commonwealth Games and also in the Olympics in 2016,” said Ian, who will face a hectic schedule in Guangzhou.
The youngster will compete in six events in six days, sparking fears that it may take a toll on his performance.
But the youngster was cool about the whole thing.
“Although I will face a hectic schedule, I will still go all out to give my best in all the events,” said Ian, who made a great impact in his first Delhi Commonwealth Games last month.
“This is my first Asian Games and I will be more than happy if I can reach the semi-finals.
“Besides doing well in the backstroke events, I also hope to rewrite my own national record in the 200m individual medley.”
He clocked a personal best of 2:07.22 in New Delhi to break the 13-year-old national record of 2:07.80 set by Wan Azlan Abdullah at the 1997 Jakarta SEA Games.
Ian is among 12 swimmers who arrived in Guangzhou yesterday with coach Paul Birmingham of Australia.
The swimming competition starts on Saturday but Malaysia are not expected to win any medals.
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