Athletics: Robani eager for Liu Xiang showdown

2009/10/29

Devinder Singh

THE prospect of going head-to-head with former Olympic champion Liu Xiang at the Asian Track and Field Championships in Guangzhou next month has got Robani Hassan's juices flowing.

Robani, who holds the country's second fastest time in the 110m hurdles, is looking at the Asian meet to salvage a year which has seen him laid low by injury three times.

The latest setback was a calf muscle strain which he suffered after the Malaysian Open heats and forced his withdrawal from the final earlier this month.

Robani has also yet to dip below 14 seconds this year, a gnawing statistic which he hopes to put right in Guangzhou.

"It's been a hard year for me as each time I think I'm about to hit my peak, I suffer an injury. Before this, a slip disc put me out for three months and just recently I strained my calf muscle at the Malaysian Open.

"But luckily this injury healed fast and I've already returned to hurdling in training. My only wish now is to stay injury free and to go under 14 seconds in the two competitions I have left this year," said Robani, 26.

The two competitions he is referring to are the Asian Championships and the Laos Sea Games in December where he will be seeking to strip compatriot Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian of the gold medal.

Robani, the 2005 Manila Sea Games winner, missed the last Games in Korat two years ago through injury and Rayzam capitalised to win the gold medal.

But first Robani wants to get up to speed in Guangzhou where he hopes the presence of China's Liu Xiang will spur him to his best time this season.

"I've made the final every time I ran at the ATF and I don't want it to be any different. Liu Xiang is in a class of his own, even if he is just coming back from injury.

"So I won't pretend that I'll win but to get a medal would be a tremendous boost. But to do that, I'll have to break the national record," added Robani, who ran 14.04 second at the Pahang Open for his best time this year.

Only Robani has come anywhere near Nur Herman Majid's 15-year-old national record of 13.73 when he clocked 13.85 last year for his personal best.

Nur Herman is also the only Malaysian to win the 110m hurdles at the ATF in Kuala Lumpur in 1991 and bronze in 1995 while Faiz Muhammad also earned a bronze in 2002.