PENANG PARA SUKMA XXI: SWIMMING SQUAD TARGETS THREE GOLD MEDALS

GEORGE TOWN, Sept 22 (Bernama) -- The Penang swimming team is getting ready to take on the challenge of bringing home at least three gold medals at the XXI Sarawak 2024 Para Malaysia Games (SUKMA) which officially opens today.

Penang Sports and Recreation Association for the Disabled (PESRON) deputy president Dr Mohd Sharizal Abdul Aziz is confident that with the line-up of the best athletes in this edition, the target can be realised despite the fierce competition from athletes of other states.

"Our realistic target coupled with intensive training four times a week we believe the swimmers can collect three gold, three silver and three bronze medals. However, if you are able to get more then it is a bonus because we see the potential to get more than three gold medals in some other events. 

"It is only in the last two years that we see the drastic rise of other states so the challenge will be more intense," he told Bernama when met at a training session for swimmers at the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Swimming Pool Complex here, recently. 

Sharizal, who is also a former Penang swimmer, said traditionally Sabah and Sarawak are the closest challengers to the state's swimming team, but this time Selangor, Federal Territories and Kedah are also seen as fierce competitors.

Commenting further, Sharizal said the selection of athletes was made based on the best time trial records when participating in the Circuit 1 and 2 of National Swimming Championships which took place March and July.

Penang swimming team manager Rashidah Mat Saad said the swimming team sent 10 athletes aged between 14 and 29 including a woman who will compete in three categories namely physical (8) and vision (1) and intellectual problems (1).

He said that in the last edition in Kuala Lumpur, the Penang SUKMA swimming team won 10 gold, four silver and three bronze.

"For this edition we are highlighting three new faces while the other seven are old faces who have competed in the SUKMA and won medals for the Penang contingent. Based on the current performance we see that they have shown tremendous improvement," he said.

Meanwhile, Firdaus Fariduddin Noordin, 24, who has a castellated left leg after an accident in 2011 when he was 12 years old, is determined to improve his personal time record in the S9 category 400 meter freestyle event, which is 6 minutes 4 seconds, recorded in the Kuala Lumpur Games two years ago. 

"This is my third participation in Para SUKMA and in the previous two editions I managed to contribute one gold each, but this time the competition is fierce because Selangor and Sarawak are fielding national swimnmers," he said.

Mohd Zulkiffli Mazeri, 29, longed to bring home a gold medal for the Penang contingent for the events he participated in, namely freestyle and breaststroke 50 and 100 metres respectively and 50 meter butterfly, besides team and medley events.

"For the butterfly, this is quite a challenge and I am paralysed in half of my body from the chest to the feet, so my waist is not strong. I only use my hand strength to swim but I'm sure I can do it.

"When I first wanted to swim, it was difficult to get a rhythm, but I saw that there were other disabled people who were worse, so why not me. There are many coaches who give us guidance and training on how to step correctly, but in terms of speed, we have to find the technique ourselves," he said, who is the eldest of seven siblings.

Para swimming offers a total of 60 medals and the competition for medals will start tomorrow until September 26 at the Pandalela Rinong Aquatic Centre, Petra Jaya.

-- BERNAMA