KUALA LUMPUR: The national athletic squad do not want to be hasty by sending sprint sensational Muhammad Azeem Mohd Fahmi to take part in the SEA Games in the Philippines from Nov 30 to Dec 11.
The new national athletics chief coach, Mohd Manshahar Abd Jalil stressed that the 15-year-old sensation must develop according to his age and hasty action might adversely affect his progress.
‘’To me, Muhammad Azeem is too young for the SEA Games. I have discussed with his coach (Muhammad Amir Izwan Tan Abdullah), it is not time yet for him to participate in adult level championship. The pressure, competition and challenges are different, too early for Azeem. He must follow step-by-step, there are many junior level championships which he can participate in, such as the Asian Junior Championship,’’ he said when contacted by Bernama Wednesday.
Mohd Manshahar also stressed that the SMK Gunung Rapat, Perak student had not qualified on merit to the SEA Games, despite having recorded 21.15 seconds when winning the gold medal in the 200 metres event at the Thailand Sports School Games(TSSG) di Khong Kaen, Thailand on Monday, which surpassed the record of the bronze medal at the 2017 SEA Games. – Bernama
