KUALA LUMPUR: With less than 500 days to go before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the race is on for Malaysian athletes to get their tickets to the biggest show on Earth.
They will compete in a series of qualifying events in various sports on the international front from now till May next year.
As the Olympic fever heats up, none of the Malaysian big names are assured of qualification yet.
Lee Chong Wei, who won the men’s singles silver in the last three Olympic Games, will try to make his comeback at the Malaysia Open next month after treatment for nose cancer.
Chong Wei’s last international outing was the Indonesia Open in July last year, where he lost to Japanese World No 1 Kento Momota in the semi-finals.
The former World No 1’s international ranking has dropped to No 30, but Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer’s latest exploits will come as a timely inspiration for the Malaysian veteran.
On Sunday, Federer clinched an ATP title in Dubai, making him only the second man in the Open Era to win 100 titles, after American Jimmy Connors who won 109.
There are some parallels between Chong Wei and Federer. Both men are greats of the same era with Federer born on Aug 8, 1981 while Chong Wei was born on Oct 21, 1982.
When Chong Wei won a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics, Federer also won an Olympic silver at the same Games.
BA of Malaysia (BAM) coaching director, Wong Choong Hann said: “Roger Federer is definitely a very special athlete and that is also why he is a tennis legend.
“Do I see any similarities between Federer and Chong Wei? Of course. More than just skill sets or training hard, what makes them different to others is the mindset.
“Just sheer determination and the will to achieve something sees them constantly pushing themselves. That is what differentiates athletes like Federer, Chong Wei and even Lin Dan from the rest.”
Newly crowned national men’s singles champion Soong Joo Ven and Lee Jii Zia, who are both also eyeing Olympic qualification, should take note from this.
In the pool, Welson Sim is making big waves, pushing the expectations of Malaysian fans. They hope the Sarawakian swimmer can go all the way to Tokyo and make world headlines.
Two weeks back, the 21-year-old Welson proved that he has what it takes to beat the world’s best, as at the Victorian Open in Melbourne, Welson stunned Australia’s Olympic champion Mack Horton in the 400m freestyle and World championship silver medallist Cameron McEvoy in the 200m freestyle to win two gold medals.
In diving, Malaysia’s hopes will once again be on Pandelela Rinong and 2017 world champion Cheong Jun Hoong. Despite a dry spell this season which saw few good results, Pandelela, Jun Hoong and Nur Dhabitah Sabri should qualify for Tokyo as they are already world class divers.
In cycling, Malaysia is looking to cyclist Azizulhasni Awang to lead the Olympic charge.
Azizul, who won the keirin bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and gold at the World Championships in Hong Kong a year later, will settle for no less than a podium finish in Tokyo.
Though the Pocket Rocketman failed to sparkle at last week’s World Championships in Pruszkow, Poland, he has the fire and talent to rise to the occasion at the highest level.
Meanwhile, two lesser known national athletes have beaten Chong Wei and the other big names in qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Sailors Khairulnizam Afendy and Nur Shazrin Mohd Latif have the distinction of becoming the first Malaysian athletes to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Khairulnizam, 26, qualified (Asian quota) by virtue of his Laser silver medal at the Indonesia Asian Games in August last year. As for Nur Shazrin, 21, her Laser Radial bronze at the Asian Games, was enough for her to go to Tokyo.
In football, after all the excitement created by the national Under-22 team last year, one would expect great optimism in the Olympic qualifiers for Tokyo.
But this is not the case. Malaysia, who defied the formbook to reach the semi-finals of the Asian Under-22 Championship in Kunshan, China, and stunned South Korea 1-0 in the Asian Games, are struggling again. The team even failed to reach the quarter-finals of the Asean level AFF Under-22 Championship in Cambodia recently.
As for the national men’s hockey team, who are ranked World No 13, they usually fancy their chances of going to the Olympics.
With the world’s best 12 teams going to Tokyo, the national team feel that they have a fighting chance. But in truth, the last time Malaysia went to the Olympics was almost 19 years ago — 2000 in Sydney.
But under the shadow of budget cuts for Malaysian sports by the Sports Ministry, it will be hard for our athletes to shine in Tokyo and match the heroics of four silver and a bronze at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.