PETALING JAYA: Like many athletes not under the Road to London programme, swimmer Khoo Cai Lin is coming to terms with a shrinking allowance as the National Sports Council (NSC) went through a 30% budget cut this year.
The SEA Games gold medallist had her monthly allowance slashed by half from March after not being paid for the first two months of the year.
But as demoralising as it is, the top national female swimmer in middle and long distance freestyle has no intention of giving up the sport she loves and is keen to earn another appearance in the Olympics.
Reliable athlete: Khoo Cai Lin delivered three gold medals from two previous SEA Games campaigns.The road to the London Olympics next year is much tougher compared to Beijing but Cai Lin has a chance to gauge her form when she competes in the Malaysian Open, which begins today at the National Aquatics Centre in Bukit Jalil.
The Malaysian Open this year has been accepted by FINA as an Olympic and world championship qualifying meet but the local swimmers will also be out to achieve the early objective of making the SEA Games squad on merit. The 22-year-old Cai Lin, who has delivered three gold medals from two previous SEA Games campaigns, may be naturally disheartened by the cut but had to accept it.
“There is nothing we can do but to make adjustments here and there. I still love what I’m doing and I want to continue as long as I feel I’m able to swim competitively,” she said.
“I want to try to beat the Olympic qualifying time for the London Games next year in the 400m freestyle to get an automatic entry.
“I feel I have a better chance to qualify as my personal best in the 400m freestyle (4:10.75) is only about one second off compared to the 800m freestyle, which is about 12 seconds off.
“But I have to give myself time to swim that kind of time. There is still time as the Malaysian Open is my first really competitive race for the year.
“But my aim this weekend will be to beat the qualifying mark again for the world championships in Shanghai in July.”
The time standards for swimming at the London Olympics consist of the “Olympic qualifying time” and the “Olympic invitation time”.
Any swimmer who meets the much faster “Olympic qualifying time” will be entered automatically for the event at the Games.
A swimmer reaching the “Olympic invitation time” standard will be eligible for entry but it will depend on the rankings and the country can only have one representative in each event.
For an example on what Cai Lin needs to achieve, the main qualifying time for the women’s 400m freestyle is 4:09.35 while the provisional qualifying time, depending on the rankings, is 4:18.07.
The five-gold medallist at the 2009 Laos SEA Games, Daniel Bego, is the notable name missing from the Malaysian Open field this year. He has been ruled out for the rest of the year after undergoing a shoulder operation recently. The long recovery process also puts him out of the world championships and SEA Games.
Besides the top local swimmers, the Malaysian Open also features competitors from Singapore, Uzbekistan, India, Vietnam and Hong Kong.
No comments:
Post a Comment