Mun Yee Becomes M'sia's First Double Gold Medallist

PALEMBANG: The Malaysian pairing of Leong Mun Yee and Traisy Vivien Junket won the third Malaysian gold medal in diving at the 26th SEA Games.

Mun Yee and Traisy got 306.66 points.

Mun Yee is the first double gold medallist at this sea games.

SEA GAMES: Wendy-Mun Yee Retain Gold

FOCUSED: Boost ahead of 3m springboard individual

Leong Mun Yee (back) and Wendy Ng in action in the 3m springboard synchronised event at the Jakabaring Aquatic Stadium in Palembang yesterday. - Picture by HASAN ISMAIL

Leong Mun Yee (back) and Wendy Ng  in action in the 3m springboard synchronised event at the Jakabaring Aquatic Stadium in Palembang yesterday. -  Picture by HASAN ISMAILWENDY Ng received an early boost for  the 3-metre springboard individual discipline when she and partner Leong Mun Yee retained their synchro title at the Jakabaring Aquatic Centre yesterday.

 Wendy hopes to carry her form into tomorrow's 3m springboard individual where Malaysia's divers have failed to win since Mun Yee's triumph at the 2003 Vietnam edition.

   For the record, the 21-year-old has not won a major international individual title since switching from gymnastics to diving seven years ago and the Kuala Lumpur-born diver is determined to establish herself in Palembang.

   "We have somehow not won the 3m springboard individual event since 2003. Although we are the second best diving team in Asia, we have not established ourselves in this event," said Wendy yesterday.

   "It will also be my first individual appearance since making my debut in Laos, two years ago, and I hope to earn a good result but I would need to execute my dives well as divers from the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam have improved."

   Mun Yee-Wendy led from start to finish by scoring 48.00, 45.60, 69.30, 66.60 and 66.60 for a five-dive total of 296.10 points to finish ahead of Indonesia's Dewi Setyaningsih-Natalie Dinda (250.20).  Sheila Mae Perez-Ceseil Domeniosp of the Philippines finished third on 243.12.

   Wendy represented Kuala Lumpur in gymnastics in the Malaysia Games and also in international invitationals before switching to diving at 13.

   "I was invited by national coach Yang Zhuliang to try out diving after he spotted me at the Cheras Swimming Centre. One year after picking up the sport, I represented Malaysia in the Asian Age-Group Championships," said Wendy.    En route to winning the title yesterday, Mun Yee-Wendy were given a hostile reception by the Indonesian fans, who booed them when they were on the springboard for their first dive.

   But the Guangzhou Asian Games silver medallists remained focused to win the title.

   Mun Yee said she and Wendy were not intimidated by the jeering.

   "We expected it but were too focused on our event to realise what was happening," said the 27-year-old.

   Zhuliang said Mun Yee-Wendy did exceptionally well to retain their title.

   "Other countries have improved and so winning this title is a great achievement. Divers from Indonesia and the Philippines are trying new things and we must continue to improve in order to maintain our status as the best diving team in this region," said Zhuliang.

   Malaysia, who withdrew from yesterday's men's 10m platform synchro, are favourites in today's men's 3m springboard and women's 10m platform synchro.

Read more: SEA GAMES: Wendy-Mun Yee retain gold - Other - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/sports/other/sea-games-wendy-mun-yee-retain-gold-1.5680#ixzz1ddv700m4

Pandelela Grabs A Silver In World Series

PETALING JAYA: Diver Pandelela Rinong is (pic) making the world take notice of her ability with another big breakthrough for Malaysia in the opening leg of the FINA Diving World Series in Moscow.

The 18-year-old Pandelela pulled off a first for Malaysia in the series by bagging the silver in the women’s 10m platform individual event on the first day of competition on Friday.

She chalked up 369.45 points to secure the silver. China’s reigning Olympic champion in the discipline, Chen Ruolin, gave a standout performance to take the gold on 409.95 and Australian Alexandra Croak settled for the bronze on 358.95.

Pandelela together with partner Leong Mun Yee are the only Malaysians to qualify for the pres­tigious four-leg series this year. The other legs will be held in Beijing (March 25-26), Shef­field (April 15-16) and Mexico (April 22-23).

Only the top 10 ranked divers are invited to compete in the series based on their performances in the world circuit and continental championships last year.

Pandelela said that she competed without any pressure but her hopes soared after finishing on top of her group in the semi-finals.

“The best three divers from the two groups qualify for the final. The Chinese diver emerged first in the other group,” said the Sarawakian in a telephone interview yesterday.

“I’m happy to dive well and break my personal best score in the 10m platform.”

The Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia secretary, Edwin Chong, praised Pandelela for putting Malaysia on the world diving map.

“This is a good quality competition and we are proud of her as she is the first Malaysian diver to make the podium in the Diving World Series,” he said.

Pandelela’s performance certainly augurs well for her chances of a strong showing in the world championships in Shanghai in July.

The world championships will not just be about fighting for medals but also to secure early qua­­lification for the Olympics next year.

The 12 finalists in individual disciplines are assured of places in the London Games and Pandelela is definitely on track to secure qualification, judging from her latest effort.

Pandelela recently beat several high-profile athletes to win the 100Plus Sportswriters Association of Malaysia’s (SAM) 2011 Athlete of the Year award, thanks to her outstanding performances in major competitions last year.

She won two silver medals at the Youth Olympics in Singapore. She went on to become the first-ever Malaysian diver to win a gold in Commonwealth Games history in New Delhi last October.
The following month, Pandelela also stood tall in her Asian Games debut in Guangzhou, winning a silver and a bronze even though she had to deal with a back muscle sprain.

ASUM Admit Divers Only In Race For The Lesser Medals

FOCUS ON DIVING

COMPETITION DATES: Nov 22-26
VENUE: Aoti Aquatics Centre
EVENTS
MEN: 1m springboard, 3m springboard, 10m platform, 3m springboard synchronised, 10m platform synchronised.
WOMEN: 1m springboard, 3m springboard, 10m platform, 3m springboard synchronised, 10m platform synchronised.
MEDALS AT STAKE: 10-10-10
TEAM MALAYSIA
MEN: Yeoh Ken Nee, Bryan Nickson Lomas, Ooi Tze Liang, Mohd Fakhrul.
WOMEN: Leong Mun Yee, Pandelela Rinong, Wendy Ng Yan Yee, Traisy Vivien, Cheong Jun Hoong.
COACHES: Yang Zhuliang, Lan Wei, Huang Qiang.
TEAM MANAGER: Siow Kian Wah.
MEDAL TARGET: Better the achievement in Doha.
PREVIOUS ACHIEVEMENTS: Busan 2002: 0-0-3 (Bronze: Yeoh Ken Nee – men’s 3m springboard, Yeoh Ken Nee-Rossharisham Roslan – men’s 3m springboard synchronised, Leong Mun Yee-Farah Begum Abdullah – women’s 3m springboard synchronised).
DOHA 2006: 0-1-3 (Silver: Yeoh Ken Nee- Rossharisham Roslan – men’s 3m springboard synchronised; Bronze: Elizabeth Jimie – women’s 1m springboard, Leong Mun Yee – women’s 3m springboard, Leong Mun Yee-Elizabeth Jimie – women’s 3m springboard synchronised).

DIVING has been one of the major success stories from the Jaya ‘98 programme as the divers have evolved from just making up the numbers at the SEA Games level to become medallists at the World Championships and, just recently, the Commonwealth Games.

(The Jaya ‘98 programme was initiated to bring success in the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games.)

The Malaysian diving squad will now be heading to Guangzhou seeking to establish themselves as the second best nation behind China at the Asian Games level.

The national divers may not be facing the likes of Australia, Britain and Canada, as was the case in New Delhi, but it still won’t be a stroll in cool Guangzhou either because they will be up against not just China but also divers from Japan and South Korea.

Pandelela Rinong heads for the Asian Games fresh from her historic gold medal feat in New Delhi, where she put to shame Australian Olympic medallists Melissa Wu and Alexandra Croak with a come-from-behind win in the 10m platform individual final.

The Sarawakian youngster also bagged a silver with Leong Mun Yee in the 10m platform synchronised event and stands a good chance of delivering a double in her Asiad debut.

Yeoh Ken Nee and Bryan Nickson will be hoping to do likewise in the men’s competition, where they will be contending in the springboard and platform disciplines respectively. Ken Nee will also be hoping to defend the silver he won with Rossharisham Roslan in the 3m springboard synchronised event in Doha four years ago. But this time he will be partnering Bryan.

In Doha, Malaysia also bagged three bronze medals from the girls’ competition and the current squad should be aiming for a clutch of silvers.

That will still be an achievement indeed if the divers can pull it off, taking into account the high level of opposition in Guangzhou.

Seven out of China’s 35 Olympic champions set to grace the Asian Games are in the diving squad, who bagged seven of the eight gold medals at stake at the Beijing Olympics two years ago.

Diving star Guo Jinjing is the only one missing from the squad, who also clinched seven gold medals at the World Championships in Rome last year.

Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (Asum) secretary Edwin Chong admitted that “Malaysia are in the race for the lesser medals when it comes to diving at the Asian Games in Guangzhou”.

“The fact that the Chinese divers are competing on homeground makes it even harder as no judge will dare to mark them down,” claimed Edwin.

“The only way for another diver to win is if the Chinese opponent makes a big mistake.

“The problem is they are very consistent and hardly make mistakes as it could be the end of their hopes of competing at the next Olympics.

“As for our top divers, like Pandelela, Mun Yee, Bryan and Ken Nee, the best we can hope for is for them to split the two Chinese divers in the individual to earn a silver.

“It will be a great achievement and it will give us plenty to look forward to at the next Olympics in London in two years’ time.

“We took home four medals in Doha and we are optimistic of improving on the haul.

“Our divers have come a long way. We could not even fight for a bronze at the SEA Games level when the National Sports Council (NSC) helped us set up the diving programme back in 1994. But we have since dominated the sport at the regional level and taken it higher.

“The improvement is there for everyone to see compared to when we won our first diving medal at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan.”

The national divers returned to China after the Commonwealth Games campaign and will head straight to Guangzhou.

Shabery And Fans Greet Heroes At KLIA

SEPANG: The badminton, aquatics, squash and athletics squads returned home from New Delhi yesterday.

But it was the highly-successful shuttlers and young diving sensation Pandelela Rinong who received the loudest applause on arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport yesterday.
The squash team returned without gold medallist Nicol David, who will be competing in the Mexico Open (from Oct 18-24). Also absent were Ong Beng Hee, Mohd Azlan Iskandar and Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan, who will be featuring in a tournament in Egypt.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek was at the airport early in the morning to welcome the athletes home and he was especially pleased with Pandelela’s golden debut at the Games.

Officials from the National Sports Council (NSC) and students from the Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) were also at the airport to welcome the players home with bouquets of flowers.
The 17-year-old Pandelela created history by winning the first ever gold medal in diving at the Commonwealth Games.

The Bidayuh lass even upstaged world class Australian divers Melissa Wu and Alexandra Croak to win the women’s 10m platform gold medal.

She also won a silver with Leong Mun Yee in the synchronised event.

Pandelela, who only joined the national senior team three years ago, was glad that her hard training paid off.

“I feel really honoured to be congratulated by the Sports Minister, NSC officials and my school teachers and classmates at the airport,” said Pandelela, who will receive a total of RM100,000 from the government as incentive for winning a gold and a silver at the Games.

“I am also happy to be the first diver to win the gold medal in the Commonwealth Games. It is indeed a great achievement for me.

“I will not be taking a break as I will leave for China soon to continue my training for the Guangzhou Asian Games.”

Pandelela will continue her training under Chinese coaches Yang Zhuliang and Huang Xiang.
“My mission now is to win medals at the Asian Games. It will not be easy to strike a gold in the Asiad as China have world class divers. I will be more than happy if I can win a silver in the 10m platform event,” said Pandelela, who will also feature in the 10m platform synchronised event.
For the record, the shuttlers bagged four gold medals through Lee Chong Wei (men’s singles), Koo Kien Kiat-Tan Boon Heong (men’s doubles) and Kien Kiat-Chin Eei Hui (mixed doubles) and the team event.

Ministry’s Full Support For Pandelela

GOLDEN MOMENT: Pandelela competes in the women’s 10m platform diving finals at the Dr SP Mukherjee Aquatics Complex in New Delhi on Monday. — AFP photo

KUCHING: The Social Development and Urbanisation Ministry will continue to give Sarawak’s golden girl Pandelela Rinong Pamg its full support, the Minister Dato Sri William Mawan assured yesterday.

“We will go all out to support her. We have decided to give her incentives in recognition of her outstanding achievement,” he said.

Mawan revealed that the ministry would also be looking for deals with international brands to help Pandelela.

Assuring that she would continue to receive the necessary perks, he said Pandelela now ranked among top national athletes like world number ones Datuk Nicol David (squash) and Datuk Lee Chong Wei (badminton) who have secured lucrative endorsement deals through their world-beating feats.

“If we could do the same for Pandelela, it will greatly improve the livelihood of her family as well as inspire budding athletes in Sarawak to follow in her footsteps,” he added.

Clinching Malaysia’s first ever Commonwealth Games diving gold medal in the women 10m platform in New Dehli on Monday, the 17-year-old’s achievement has made her a sporting household name in the country.

Adding a gold medal to the silver she won with Leong Mun Yee in the 10m synchronise event the day before, the plucky Bidayuh lass has shown that with hard work and commitment, success in sports is possible.

Going through intensive training in Kunming, China, before the XIX Commonwealth Games, she took time out to compete in the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore, diving her way to a silver medal in the 10m platform behind Asian Youth Games gold medallist Liu Jaio of China.
“We’ll monitor her training and performance. Because she is our pride, the ministry will not just sit and watch. We will support her all the way,” Mawan said, adding that Pandelela’s silver medal in Singapore was as good as her Commonwealth Games gold medal.

Meanwhile, Sarawak State Sports Council (MSNS) director Francis Nyurang Ding said Pandelela’s superb performance showed that MSNS’s development programme was starting to bear fruit.

“We are very happy for her. We always knew she was championship material and she proved that in New Dehli,” he added.

“Not only is the council playing an important role – our athletes’ successes are the cumulative efforts of the coaches, parents and the state government.

“Pandelela represented the country and won the gold medal. Sarawak should be proud of her.”
On money incentives, Francis said: “These will certainly be given to Pandelela but the amount will be further discussed – there is no fixed amount yet.”

Pandelela On Cloud Nine After 10m Platform Gold

Malaysia's Pandelela Pamg competes in the women's 10m platform event during the Commonwealth Games at the Dr. S.P. Mukherjee Aquatics Center in New Delhi, India, yesterday.

NEW DELHI Oct 11 — Diver Pandelela Rinong clinched Malaysia”s seventh gold medal of the Commonwealth Games with a sizzling performance in the women”s 10m Platform diving at the Dr S.P. Mukherjee Aquatic Complex here today.

The 17-year-old Sarawakian who had won a silver medal in women”s 10m synchronized diving with Leong Mun Yee yesterday, amassed 371.05 points for the gold.

Her compatriot Traisy Vivien Tukiet, another Sarawakian lass who had won the SUKMA diving gold in Melaka from the 10m platform in June, however could only manage ninth spot with 310.55 points.

Despite the defeat, Traisy was still able to spot a smile when celebrating Pandelela”s victory with other diving officials.

Australian diver Melissa Wu collected the silver while another Aussie, Alexandra Croak took the bronze.

Meanwhile, in the men”s 3m Springboard, Yeoh Ken Nee , Bryan Nickson Lomas, and Muhammad Fakhrul Md Zain managed only a sixth, seventh and 10th place respectively from the 12 divers who competed.

Alexandre Despatie and Rueben Ross from Canada won gold and silver medal while Grant Nel of Australian won bronze.

Diving events continue tomorrow with the men”s 10m Synchro Platform, where Malaysia will be represented by Ooi Tze Liang and Abd Rashid Muhammad.

j
Leong Mun Yee and Cheong Jun Hoong will compete in Women”s 1m Springboard while Bryan, Ken Nee, Muhammad Fakhrul and Ahmad Amsyar will take part in the men”s 3M Synchro Springboard. — Bernama

Gold Trail Grinds To A Halt For Malaysians

SILVER DIVERS: Pandelela (above) and Mun Yee compete in the Final of Women's 10m Synchro Platform diving

NEW DELHI: Malaysia's gold trail came to a grinding halt on day seven when the Malaysian contingent added just two silver and one bronze on a lull yesterday which saw Australia continue their domination.

The day started with a silver medal from Nur Ayuni and a bronze from Nur Suryani Muhamad Taibi in the women's 10m Air Rifle individual competition.

In the evening, Leong Mun Yee and Pandelela Rinong plucked a silver from the diving pool when the duo put up a splendid performance in the 10m platform synchronised diving.

It was also a day of near misses for Malaysians as they allowed a number of medals to slip through their grasp, especially when redhot favourite Nur Suryani Taibi could only manage a bronze while her partner Nur Ayuni missed the gold by two points to a Singaporean shooter.
Likewise, the much-expected archers failed to reap any medal — the men and women individual recurve archers failing in the process.

Archer S. Anbarasi missed a medal in the women's individual recurve event in the morning, so did Hasli Izwan in the 25m centrefire pistol individual event.

All in all, Malaysians lost a chance to bite into the slice of 42 gold medals offered yesterday.
"It was a lull. But overall it was an okay day, we managed to win some medals though we expected more from other sports. We hope the next few days will bring in more medals," Malaysian chef-de-mission Tan Sri Abdul Halil Abd Mutalif said.

Today, Malaysian athletes would take part in at least eight finals in their respective sports — mainly in diving, shooting and lawn bowls — where another 15 gold medals are up for grabs.
But while sporting action continued in the field and stadiums, controversies hogged the limelight outside the arenas.

Commonwealth Games Federation president Mike Fennell acknowledged that the Delhi games was progressing swiftly, without a single event being cancelled or postponed, but other pressing issues still disturbed the organisers.

Complaints of sports fans failing to buy tickets but syndicates in Delhi selling tickets on the black market had surfaced, prompting organisers to take stern action.

"We don't condone such acts, we have lodged a report with the police and monitoring the situation," warned Delhi Games Organising Chairman Suresh Kalmadi.

Commonwealth Games / Diving: Duo Shine With Silver

Pandelela Rinong (left) and Leong Mun Yee in action in the 10m synchro platform .yesterday.

LEONG Mun Yee ended a 12-year wait spanning four Commonwealth Games after she and partner Pandelela Rinong saved their best for last to clinch the 10m synchro platform silver at the Dr SPM Aquatic Complex yesterday.

It was Malaysia's first Commonwealth Games diving medal in the women's category and both divers were filled with joy, especially as they were lying fourth after three dives and in danger of being upstaged by younger teammates Cheong Jun Hoong and Traisy Vivien Tukiet, who were second.But the third dive, which Mun Yee said is their secret weapon, took them to second place behind Australia's Olympic silver medallists Melissa Wu and Alexandra Croak while Jun Hoong-Traisy finished fifth.

"We were confident that we would be able to place ourselves in the medal places as we have been working on this dive in training," said Mun Yee.

The three and a half somersault pike was so well executed that the Malaysians scored 82.56, the only dive of the evening that breached the 80-point mark.The Malaysians scored a total 328.38 points for the silver to the Australians 335.76. Australia also took the bronze through Briony Cole and Anabelle Smith.

Pandelela said errors in the earlier dives probably cost them the gold."The scoring by the judges was also a little questionable as well as the Australians seemed to get some high marks despite not doing too well in the earlier dives," said Pandelela.Still, it has been a good year for Pandelela, who won two silver at the Youth Olympics in Singapore and has now added the Commonwealth medal.

She has the 10m platform today while Mun Yee will be competing in the 1m and 3m individual springboard events.Mun Yee, partnering youngster Ng Yan Yee, didn't fare well in the 3m synchronised springboard as they finished last in the six-pair event.Gold medallists in last year's Laos Sea Games, the Malaysians could only score 260.04 points.Yeoh Ken Nee also had to bow to the emergence of younger divers as he relinquished the men's 1m springboard silver he won in Melbourne four years ago. Ken Nee finished fourth with 400.10 points.Bryan Nickson Lomas was seventh, scoring 370.80 points while Muhammad Fakhrul Md Zain finished 11th with 260.04.

Mun Yee-Pandelela Bag Silver With Near Perfect Final Plunge

DIVERS Leong Mun Yee-Pandelela Rinong soared on a magnificent final plunge to nail a silver medal in the women’s 10m platform synchronised event at the Dr S.P. Mukherjee Sports Complex last night.

However, the first-ever medal for Malaysia in Commonwealth Games women’s diving almost did not materialise as Mun Yee-Pandelela were lying in fifth position with two more dives to go.
But the duo moved into medal contention after the fourth attempt and confirmed their place in the history books with a near-perfect final dive, which earned them 82.56.

It was the highest score on the board in the competition last night and elevated them to second place on a total of 328.38.

Australia’s Olympic silver medallists Melissa Wu-Alexandra Croak led from start till the end to secure gold on 335.76. Australia also grabbed the bronze through Briony Cole-Sarah Barrow, who chalked up 319.68.

Malaysians Cheong Jun Hoong-Traisy Vivien fell out of a podium finish. They were in second spot with two remaining dives but failed to hold on and settled for fifth on 316.38.

Mun Yee felt that they let slip the chance to win the gold medal with a poor start.

“We did not do that well in the first two dives and we slipped. Otherwise, we would have done better,” said 25-year-old, who was competing in her fourth Commonwealth Games.

“But going into the final dive, we were confident that a medal was ours as we have pulled it off well in practice.”

Pandelela, the winner of two silver medals in the Youth Olympics in Singapore in August, was happy to have made a medal-winning debut in the Commonwealth Games.

“It will give me the confidence to do well in my remaining events. I will try my best as we are competing with top divers here,” said the 16-year-old, who will dive in the 10m platform individual today.

In the women’s 3m springboard synchronised event yesterday morning, Mun Yee partnered Wendy Ng for sixth place.

Yeoh Ken Nee, the silver medallist at the 2006 Melbourne Games, settled for fourth place in the 1m springboard.

He chalked up 385.70 points behind Canadian Ross Reuben, who took bronze on 400.10. Fellow Malaysian Bryan Nickson was placed seventh on 370.80. Bryan had qualified just ahead of Ken Nee for the top 12 final earlier in sixth place.

Olympic silver medallist Alexandre Despatie of Canada successfully defended his 1m springboard title with a score of 468.15. Matthew Mitcham of Australia, the 10m platform gold medallist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, settled for silver on 441.

Swimmers Gearing Up For Asiad Too In New Delhi

THE divers look set to make a bigger splash in New Delhi this time and even a historic gold is within reach if world championships bronze medallists Pandelela Rinong and Leong Mun Yee rise to the occasion in the 10m platform synchronised event.

But it will be a quieter Games for the swimmers.

Even the likes of multiple SEA Games gold medallist Daniel Bego and Khoo Cai Lin, who are the only ones to beat the qualifying times, will find it very difficult to keep pace in a world-class competition.

The swimming competition has not seen a massive withdrawal of the big names unlike in athletics.

The pool at the Dr S.P. Murkhejee Stadium will be aplenty with Olympians and world record holders.

The Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (Asum) secretary, Edwin Chong, said that for swimmers like Daniel and Cai Lin, the Commonwealth Games competitions were part of a run-up to the Guangzhou Asian Games in November.

“We can look at Daniel and Cai Lin to qualify for the finals in their events. “That will already be a big achievement for them,” he said.

“Daniel, for example, came back to train only in the second half of the year because he was preparing for the A-level exams and it would be too much to put a target to deliver.

“With two big Games being so close to each other, we have no choice but to focus on one for the swimmers to peak.”

Malaysia enjoyed their best achievement in swimming in the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester through Alex Lim Keng Liat, who delivered a silver in the 50m backstroke and a bronze in the 100m backstroke.

Pandelela Cedera, Mun Yee Ganding Dengan Traisy Cabaran Ke Sepanyol

KUALA LUMPUR – Penerjun negara, Leong Mun Yee tidak hilang fokus untuk menghadapi Kejohanan Terbuka Sepanyol bulan depan meskipun terpaksa bertukar gandingan dalam acara platform.

Pasangan asal Mun Yee, Pandelela Rinong (gambar), terpaksa direhatkan dari kejohanan tersebut dari 16 hingga 18 Julai ini selepas mengalami keretakan pada jari kakinya semasa menjalani latihan minggu lepas.

Ekoran itu, Mun Yee akan berpasangan dengan Traisy Vivien Tukiet.
“Memang sukar untuk mencari keserasian untuk kejohanan terdekat ini, tetapi saya anggap perkara ini sebagai cabaran,” katanya di sini, semalam.

Bagaimanapun, katanya, pertukaran pasangan bukan perkara baru bagi dirinya dalam acara platform mahupun acara papan anjal.

Gandingan Mun Yee dan Pandelela sebelum ini meraih pingat gangsa dalam acara terjun berpasangan 10m platform pada Kejohanan Dunia di Rome pada Julai lepas.

Mun Yee berkata, dia tidak meletakkan sebarang sasaran pingat pada kejohanan di Sepanyol kecuali untuk memperbaiki prestasi peribadinya.

Matlamat beliau pada tahun ini ialah untuk mencari pengalaman dalam kejohanan antarabangsa sebagai persediaan untuk menghadapi Sukan Komanwel di New Delhi, India pada Oktober dan Sukan Asia di Guangzhou, China, November ini.

“Sasaran saya untuk merangkul pingat tanpa mengira warna ada Sukan Asia nanti. Bagi Sukan Komanwel saya tidak menaruh harapan tinggi kerana terdapat saingan sengit dari penerjun berkelas dunia seperti dari Australia dan Britain,” katanya.

Mun Yee kini menjalani latihan intensif bersama jurulatih dari China, Yang Zhu Liang di Pusat Akuatik Nasional di Bukit Jalil dan Pusat Akuatik Darul Ehsan di Cheras. – Bernama

A Break For Bryan

By LIM TEIK HUAT

PETALING JAYA: Seasoned diver Ross­harisham Roslan is out of the Commonwealth and Asian Games later this year.

And Sarawakian Bryan Nickson Lomas is set to benefit from Ross­harisham’s absence as the replacement diver for his event.

Rossharisham partnered Ken Nee to deliver an Asiad silver medal in the men’s 3m springboard synchronised final in Doha four years ago and he also made the World Championships final in Rome last year.

However, Rossharisham was forced to skip the Laos SEA Games last December as he had to undergo surgery on his left knee.

Despite having returned to training recently, coach Yang Zhuliang is not convinced with his form and does not want to risk including him in the squad for the two Games.

The Commonwealth Games will be held in New Delhi in October and the Asiad in Guangzhou, China, in November.

This will be the second time that Rossharisham will be missing the Commonwealth Games.
He was in the squad as Ken Nee’s partner for the Melbourne Games in 2006 but had to watch from the stands after his team-mate came down with fever the day after bagging silver in the 1m springboard competition.

Ken Nee subsequently pulled out from the 3m springboard and synchronised competitions.
Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (Asum) secretary Edwin Chong confirmed yesterday that Rossharisham was not in the list of entries to be submitted to the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) for both the Games.

“We paired Bryan with Ken Nee at the Asian championships in China just before the Laos SEA Games and they did well to win the silver medal. They went on to clinch the SEA Games gold medal and they have been doing well in training since,” said Edwin.

“Rossharisham is back now but he needs to recover most of his dives if he is to partner Ken Nee again. The coach feels that it will better for Ken Nee to stick with Bryan as there is not much time left.

“Bryan has also reached the same standards as Ken Nee in the springboard and we feel they have a good shot at grabbing a medal at both the Games.”

It will be taxing for Bryan and Ken Nee at both the Games as they will have to prepare for four separate events.

Bryan will have to concentrate on the 10m platform while Ken Nee is focusing on the 1m and 3m springboard individual.

The duo are currently undergoing training with other senior divers in China for the FINA World Cup to be held in Changzhou from June 2-6.

The other male divers in the squad for the biennial meet are Mohd Fakhrul and Ooi Tzer Liang while the women divers are Leong Mun Yee, Pandelela Rinong, Traisy Vivien and Wendy Ng Yan Yee.

Rich Pickings For SEA Games’ Best Athlete Daniel

PUTRAJAYA: Swimmer Daniel Bego boosted his bank account by RM29,000 after becoming the biggest recipient of the Laos SEA Games incentive awards given out by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday.

Only the SEA Games gold medallists were rewarded and Daniel topped the list with his stunning five-gold performance in Vientiane.

Previous Malaysian male swimmers had never won more than two individual gold medals in a single Games but Daniel topped the list by coming out tops in the 100m, 200m and 400m freestyle as well as in the 100m butterfly.

Grand total: Daniel Bego shows off the trophy and the mock cheque for RM29,000 Tuesday.

The 20-year-old Sarawakian also secured an additional RM4,000 for setting four new SEA Games records.
The only event in which he did not lower the Games record was in the 200m butterfly.

Daniel, who also smashed the longest existing record in the 400m freestyle and was later named Best Male Athlete of the 25th edition of the Games, said the Asian and

Commonwealth Games would be his major goals this year.

“These are the two big meets which I hope to do well in. This is the first time I have qualified on merit for the Commonwealth and Asian Games. I have my A-level examinations some time in June and I plan to step up training after that,” said Daniel, who is also hotly tipped to win the Male Olympian of the Year award for the second successive time on Saturday.

A total of RM230,000 were handed out yesterday and aquatics, which accounted for 15 out of the 40 gold medals won by the Malaysian contingent, took the biggest share of the pie with a total of RM83,000.

Woman swimmer Siow Yi Ting was the second biggest individual recipient with RM18,000 for winning three gold medals in new SEA Games record times.

Fellow woman swimmer Khoo Cai Lin completed the list for swimming with RM6,000 while divers Yeoh Ken Nee, Bryan Nickson Lomas, Pandelela Rinong, Leong Mun Yee and Wendy Ng Yan Yee collectively earned RM30,000.

The national football team, who ended a 20-year gold medal drought in Laos, received RM20,000.

Completing the list were athletics (RM32,000), karate (RM25,000), pencak silat (RM20,000), wushu (RM15,000), badminton (RM15,000), boxing (RM10,000), taekwondo (RM5,000) and archery (RM5,000).

Mun Yee, Yan Yee Complete Malaysia's Gold Harvest

Ng Yan Yee (left) and Leong Mun Yee en route to the 3m springboard synchronised gold at the National Sports Complex aquatics centre in Vientiane yesterday.

Seasoned Mun Yee Eyes Bonus Gold With Rookie Wendy

Divers Contribute Two More Gold Medals

Brilliant Bryan Strikes Gold, Mun Yee Settles For Bronze

Dazzling diver: Malaysia’s Bryan Nickson Lomas (centre) posing with his gold medal after winning the men’s 10m platform final on Friday. Indonesia’s Muhammad Nasrullah (left) took the silver while the bronze went to the Philippines’ Rexel Ryan Fabriga. — AFP

Pandelela Hopes To Be In Sync With Mun Yee

NATION'S BEST: Pandelela and Mun Yee perform on their way to clinching the bronze medal of the women's 10m platform

Mun Yee, Pandelela Eye Two Golds in SEA Games

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All together now: Leong Mun Yee (left) and Pandelela Rinong in action during the 3m springboard synchronised event yesterday. - UU BAN/THE STAR