KUALA LUMPUR: National junior track cycling coach Herman Terryn is a tough man to impress, despite a historic performance by Nur Alyssa Farid at the Junior Track World Championships in Luoyang, China, last week.
Alyssa, 18, made headlines as the first Malaysian female cyclist to qualify for the keirin final, but her hopes were dashed when she crashed in the race.
Nonetheless, she set two new national junior records — clocking 11.070s in the girls' sprint quarter-finals and 35.469s in the 500m time trial, smashing the previous 36.098s record from 2021.
However, Terryn, who took the reins as coach in February, is not satisfied.
The French coach stressed that identifying and nurturing talent is vital to ensuring Malaysia have the best prospects moving forward.
"This is the junior level, and while there was potential, no medals were won. Alyssa has the ability, but whether she can become a champion is still up in the air. We need to work harder."
He also highlighted the challenge of talent identification.
"We have the Yayasan Sime Darby Track Series (YSDTS) and the national championships, but it's not enough. We need more testing opportunities to discover maximum talent."
Terryn said the financial and organisational limitations make it difficult to unearth talent, but stressed that expanding the talent pool is key to future success.
Looking ahead, Terryn believes the Asian Track Cycling Championships (ACC) in Nilai next February will serve as an important test for his riders.
"We have four women in the junior group, so we can form a sprint team. But I want a strong team that's ready to compete."
The boys, who didn't fare as well in the World Championships, will also have another shot next year.
"I hope results will improve based on the promising signs from the National Championships."