KUALA LUMPUR: Taekwondo Malaysia (TM) has questioned the National Sports Council (NSC) over its move to drop taekwondo from the list of 19 core sports in Malaysia Games (Sukma).
TM deputy president Datuk Mohd Nazifuddin Mohd Najib said he was surprised by the decision as his party was not provided with the opportunity to talk about the issue.
On Tuesday, Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin announced that taekwondo, sepak takraw, and weightlifting were dropped as core sports.
Mohd Nazifuddin, who is also Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) vice-president, said the OCM was also never asked to discuss with the NSC on the decision to drop the three sports.
“If we want to strengthen Malaysian taekwondo, we should provide opportunities, funds, and support so that we can send athletes abroad to participate in international competitions.
“Dropping taekwondo from Sukma is not the way. The cost of having taekwondo in Sukma is not high,” he added. --BERNAMA