NSC Back-up Athletes' Gathering

25 - 27 February 2014

Universiti Teknologi Mara, 

Shah Alam 

Selangor

No	ATHLETES	CLASS
1.	Hanis Nazirul b. Jaya Surya	1 Commonwealth
2.	Gabriel Gilbert Daim	1 Commonwealth
3.	Jellson Jabillin	1 Commonwealth
4.	Muhammad Syahmi b. Mohd Rezal	1 Commonwealth
5.	Megan Elizabeth Teoh	1 Olympic
6.	Ng Zheng Ni	2 Olympic

Dhabitah On Course For Asiad and C’wealth bow

PETALING JAYA: Young diver Nur Dhabitah Sabri has put herself in line for a place in the individual 10m platform event alongside the illustrious Pandelela Rinong at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games following a strong performance at the German Grand Prix in Rostock.

The 15-year-old Dhabitah managed to clear the semi-finals of the individual 10m platform at a World Grand Prix meet for the first time.

Dhabitah scored 302.85 points en route to a fourth spot in the preliminaries. The top 12 divers advanced to the semis but Dhabitah’s run was halted when she could only finish fifth in her semi-final grouping with 269.20 points.

The top three divers from the two semi-final groupings progressed to the final, which was eventually won by China’s Qian Ren with 353.40 points.

China completed a 1-2 sweep with Jie Lian taking the silver with 344.25 points while Ukrainian Jullia Prokopchuk was third with a 325.55 total.

Dhabitah, in fact, outshined her more experienced team-mate Traisy Vivien Tukiet, who competed at the 2012 London Olympics. Traisy failed to qualify for the semi-finals and was only placed 16th in the preliminaries with 260.55 points.

Coach Yang Zhuliang was full of praise for Dhabitah.

“Dhabitah performed better than Traisy for the second time at the Grand Prix level.

“Dhabitah had a very good chance to make the final as she was lying in third position with one dive to go in the semis. But she flopped the last dive and earned less than 20 points. Her nerves failed her but I still think it’s a good performance for Dhabitah,” said Zhuliang.

With more experience, the Chinese coach is convinced his young charge can go far.

“The main assignments this year are the Commonwealth Games (in July) and Asian Games (in September).

“If she improves further in the next few months, she should be going for both Games,” added Zhuliang.

The Kuala Lumpur-born Dhabitah was promoted to the elite squad last year and she made her SEA Games debut in Myanmar in style, bagging gold with Leong Mun Yee in the 10m platform synchro.

In Rostock, Dhabitah was also entered for the individual 3m springboard but did not qualify for the semis. Dhabitah and Adeline Chin finished 15th (227.85 points) and 18th (223.65 points) respectively.

Chew Yi Wei, the only Malaysian male diver in the fray, was placed 26th in the individual 3m springboard prelimaries with a 326.45 total.

Swimming: Welson Sim

No.	Athlete	Class	Competition	Leave duration
1	Welson Sim	5 C’wealth	Sarawak Swimming Competition, Sibu	20 – 23 Feb 2014

Dhabitah’s Not Taking It Easy In Germany

PETALING JAYA: All eyes will be on young diver Dhabitah Nur Sabri when she takes the plunge in the German Grand Prix in Rostock this weekend.

The German meet is the second leg of this year season’s World Grand Prix Circuit and Malaysia, one of the 26 competing nations, will be represented by six divers. Besides Dhabitah, the other female divers are Olympian Trasie Vivien Tukiet, Kam Ling Kar, Adeline Chin and Jasmine Lai. Chew Yi Wei is the sole male representative.

Dhabitah will be competing in the individual 10m platform. In the 10m platform synchro, she will partner Trasie for the first time.

The 15-year-old Dhabitah will be using a difficult routine this time and it will be interesting to see whether she can hold her own against a strong cast.

She did well in her maiden appearance at the World Grand Prix Circuit in Fort Lauderdale, the United States, in May last year. She finished 14th, missing the semi-finals by only two spots.

Dhabitah then went on to claim two golds at the Asian Diving Cup in Singapore. She ended the year with a bang, clinching gold in the 10m platform synchro with Leong Mun Yee in her SEA Games debut in Myanmar.

National coach Yang Zhuliang believes Dhabitah can make an impact in Rostock.

“We started Dhabitah on a higher degree of difficulty (DD), which is even higher than for Olympic bronze medallist Pandelela Rinong.

“She did not use the routine in the SEA Games as it was not necessary at that level. But I was happy she did not let her nerves get the better of her at the Games.

“This will be the first diving competition for the year and we hope to see some good results.

“It is not going to be easy for Dhabitah to get a medal in the individual as older and experienced divers are there. We may have a chance in the women’s 10m platform synchro.

“I hope to see all our divers polish their dives. Their performances will give us an idea of where we stand ahead of the Commonwealth and Asian Games later this year,” said Zhuliang.

The divers left for Rostock from Guangzhou, China on Monday night. The national team have been training in China for the last three weeks.

Besides Rostock, Dhabitah and company will also be competing in the Canada Grand Prix in Gatineau (May 1-4), Singapore (Oct 17-19) and Kuala Lumpur (Oct 24-26).

2014 Aquatic Athletes

Boredom Fails To Dim Pandalela’s Determination

A file picture of Pandelela Rinong. She feels that the centralised training early in the year is important for her success.

KUALA LUMPUR: Boredom is sinking in but national diving queen Pandelela Rinong is doing all she can to enjoy her one-month training in Guangzhou without any disruptions.

The one-month training is crucial in preparing her to face an exciting year in diving - with her ultimate goal of making a great splash in every single tournament - whether it is a small or major one.

The diving team, led by Pandelela, arrived in Guangzhou with coach Zhang Yuliang about a week before Chinese New Year (on Jan 25) and their first assignment is the opening leg of the FINA World Series in Beijing, China, from March 14-16.

It will be followed by five other legs in Dubai (March 20-22), London (April 25-27), Moscow (May 2-4), Windsor (May 30-June 1) and Monterrey (June 6-8). And there are other majors like the World Cup in Shanghai, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Asian Games in Incheon.

Pandelela said that the centralised training early in the year was important as the right focus during this time would be the key to success.

“Training here is really good but it can be quite boring,” said the 20-year-old, referring to her daily routine of going in and out of the diving pool to fine-tune her performances.

“I did not celebrate Chinese New Year but it was good to spend some time with my fellow divers enjoying the festive season here. During my free time, I try to catch up on my favourite television shows - Gossip Girl and Supernatural ... it keeps me entertained,” quipped the 2012 Olympic Games bronze medallist.

A fun-loving person by nature, Pandelela knows the importance of striking a balance in order not to burn out.

“There are a lot of tournaments this year and I plan to do well in all of them. I plan to enter every tournament with the aim of breaking records and improving my personal best,” she added.

Last year, Pandelela did well in the World Series when she completed the season as the second best in the overall standings. At the last Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, she delivered a gold medal in the individual platform event and at the Asiad in Guangzhou, her best effort was winning one silver in the 10m platform synchro.

It will be a tall order for Pandelela to maintain or surpass her achievements but if her determination is anything to go by, one can bank on the Sarawakian lass to shine in all her three events (3m springboard synchro, individual 10m platform and synchronised), in all the stops at the World Series and at both the major Games.

Besides Pandelela, the other women divers currently based in China are Cheong Jun Hoong, Wendy Ng, Nur Dhabitah Sabri, Traisy Vivien Tukiet, Leong Mun Yee, Loh Zhiayi, Adeline Chin, Kam Ling Kar and Jasmine Lai. The men are Ahmad Amsyar Azman, Chew Yiwei, Mohd Danial Sabri, Mohd Nazreen Abdullah, Ooi Tze Liang and Sylvester Gaing.