Despite many athletes gunning for a slot in the Rio Olympics this August, national cycling coach John Beasley is confident that Malaysia will be having at least two representatives in the major event, with the cyclists being Azizulhasni Awang and Fatehah Mustapa.
“Azizulhasni will probably qualify for the keirin event because currently, he is ranked the first in Asia. As for the sprint event, the chances are also bright for him,” said Beasley as quoted from Harian Metro.
“Fatehah is placed second in the sprint event right now. She is also placed third in the keirin event.”
The Asia Cycling Championship (ACC) in Oshima, Japan next week and the World Reack Championship in London this March will be the final two platforms for the athletes to accumulate more points to qualify for the Olympics.
On the other hand, Jupha Somnet, whom is also gunning for a Rio slot, may not be able to qualify that easily as she is trailing behind in the omnium event. The event will only cater to the top 18 cyclists.
“Jupha might not qualify unless if she is able to defeat the Japanese cyclists that are more than 49 points above her. Honestly, I doubt it will happen.”
“However, she did not fail at the mission because she has already given her best and displayed improvement in every race.”
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