The NST : Learning life values through sport

According to national swimmer Khoo Cai Lin, competitive swimming has taught her many invaluable lessons in life

I STARTED swimming when I was three years old. When I was 12, I wanted to see how far I could go in the sport, so I participated in various interstate swimming competitions such as Majlis Sukan-Sukan Sekolah Malaysia and two years later, I was selected to join the national swimming team.

After years of training and competing, I qualified for the Olympic Games in Beijing 2008 and London 2012. These are my biggest achievements to date. I love the opportunities that come with my sporting career such as travelling to different countries, meeting people and experiencing new cultures.
Swimming has given me a sense of belonging. My coaches and fellow swimmers make me feel I am part of a community. Most people meet their friends at a mall or a cafe. I meet mine at interstate and international swimming competitions and training sessions. My life is indeed vastly different from that of my peers. The friends I’ve made in the swimming community are my support system and there is a sense of camaraderie among us.

With swimming, I have honed many integral life values which are parallel to the daily challenges I face in life. Physical strength, discipline, dedication, perseverance and time management are some of the invaluable life values and skills the sport has instilled in me.

I am pursuing my degree in public relations and marketing. It is essential that I utilise my time effectively and efficiently as time management is key to keeping up with my fast-paced world. In order to strive for excellence, I need to maintain a crucial balance between my swimming career and my studies. I believe the discipline that has been inculcated in me has helped me set my priorities.
 Like everything else in life, I have learnt that at times winning is not everything. Medals  don’t make an athlete. Losing allows you to identify weaknesses and work on self-improvement. It teaches us to be humble and to keep pushing ourselves to do the best.

I am grateful for my family’s support and understanding because as a national swimmer, I stay at the Majlis Sukan Negara dormitory on weekdays to train and only go home on weekends. My family understands my commitment to my career and they spend time with me whenever I am home.
They have given me the freedom to pursue my goals. A parent’s encouragement is vital to a child’s growing interest in a sport. However, parents should not be the only ones involved.  Society needs to play its part as well.

I hope my story will inspire our young athletes to pursue their dreams. With the encouragement and support of my parents, coaches and peers, I have set my sights on greater heights and will strive to achieve the best outcome in next month’s SEA Games in Myanmar.  

Swimming has given Khoo a sense of belonging.

Read more : http://www.nst.com.my/life-times/health/learning-life-values-through-sport-1.411918

The NST : SWIMMING: Shaun can’t wait to make his mark

By Fadhli Ishak

SWIMMER Shaun Yap is looking to end what has been a breakthrough year for him with a strong showing on his debut at the Sea Games next month.

Shaun, who will be competing in the 100 and 200 metre breaststroke events, believes he has a reasonable shot at clinching a medal from either category at the Wunna Theikdi aquatics complex in Naypyitaw.

His current personal bests in the 100m and 200m stand at  one minute 3.3 seconds and 2:18.70s respectively.

"Physically I am in good condition but I have not improved on my times for the last three or four months. I am hoping to do so in Myanmar," said Shaun.

"I want to win in both but I think I have a better chance in the 100m.

"The winning time for the 100m was 1:02.01s (Nuttapong Ketin, Thailand) which is not far from my   personal best."

The Help Academy A-Level student,  who trains twice a day from 6:30am-8:30am and 3:30-6:30pm daily and goes to classes in between, added that he is still hungry for success after a long competitive season.

"It has been a long season but I am still very excited about going to the Sea Games, especially as it is my first time.

"It (studying, training and competing) is tough to balance but I try my best to cope. The Sea Games is the last major tournament of the year and has been the focus for me for the past few months.

"I will start tapering next week and hopefully I will be at my best when it matters."

The 18-year-old had in February set a  national record of 29.12 seconds, .34 faster than the old mark, in the 50m breaststroke at the Selangor Age Group Championships (SAGC).

He went on to further lower that mark  at the National Age Group Championships in April where he clocked a blistering 28.69 seconds to clinch gold and qualification to the World Championships in Barcelona (August).

He also took bronze in the 50m breaststroke at the Islamic Games in Indonesia last month. The category, however, is not part of the Sea Games this time.


Read more: SWIMMING: Shaun can’t wait to make his mark - Other - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/sports/other/swimming-shaun-can-t-wait-to-make-his-mark-1.412184#ixzz2lknmSTht

The Star : Tough times ahead for Malaysian swimmers

By Lim Teik Huat

PETALING JAYA: The absence of an established performer for Malaysia in swimming means the gold medals will be hard to come by in next month’s Myanmar SEA Games.

Khoo Cai Lin (front) seen here at the World Cup meet in Barcelona in July, will be one of Malaysia's medal hopefuls in swimming at the Myanmar SEA Games next month. - Filepic

Nurul Huda Abdullah and Jeffrey Ong ruled the pool in the 1980s but their departures were felt in subsequent Games from 1991 to 1995 as Malaysia only managed to bag two golds each time.

The tally increased again in later editions with the emergence of a new breed of swimmers based in the United States like Lim Keng Liat, Elvin Chia and Siow Yi Ting before the likes of Khoo Cai Lin and Daniel Bego began to take over.

Breaststroker Yi Ting has since called it quits two months ago due to her age and a growth in her neck.

Yi Ting’s absence will be really felt especially as she contributed two out of the five golds at the last Games in Indonesia.

So, not much is not expected of the 14-member team – nine men and five women. On top of that, five of them are newcomers as Malaysia go through a transitional period. At best, they are only considered good for only three golds.

Daniel is back after missing the previous Games to recover from shoulder injuries but it remains to be seen whether he has what it takes to repeat the five-gold splash in Laos in 2009.

The men’s squad will also have Kevin Yeap, Asian Youth Games gold medallist Lim Ching Hwang, Yap See Tuan, Shaun Yap, Wong Fu Kang,Tern Jian Han, Vernon Lee and Welson Sim while Cai Lin, Christina Loh, Erika Kong, Yap Siew Hui and Nadia Adrianna Redza make up the women’s team.

Shaun (breaststroke), Fu Kang (breaststroke), Welson (freestyle), Siew Hui (butterfly) and Nadia Adrianna Redza (breastroke) are the five promising youngsters that will be making their debuts.

“There is always a star swimmer for each SEA Games. Unfortunately, it is not going to come from Malaysia this time,” said national coach Paul Birmingham.

“Yi Ting is gone and you cannot expect Cai Lin to swim like what she did a few years ago. We will head to Myanmar this time with lower expectations but it is also interesting to see where our swimmers are heading to in future Games.

“We are expecting the likes of Siew Hui and Shaun to come good by the next Games.

“We are in the midst of rebuilding a fresh team and we can’t expect them to deliver right away.

“If they can win some medals, that would be a good start.

“SEA Games is very hard to predict as there are a lot of changes over a two-year period. We don’t really know the exact strength of our rivals,” added Birmingham.

At the last Games in Palembang, the golds came from Christina (50m event breaststroke), long distance specialist Kevin (1,500m freestyle) and Cai Lin (800m freestyle).

In Yi Ting’s absence, Christina will carry the hope of keeping the 100m and 200m breaststroke titles in Malaysian hands. There is no chance for Christina to defend her 50m breaststroke title as the event is not contested this time.

While swimming is unable to deliver as many as they used to in the past, Malaysia are pinning their hopes on the divers to match the previous haul of seven golds from Indonesia two years ago.

Malaysia are good for gold in at least five out of the eight events at stake.

Team captain Pandelela Rinong, who won the Sarawak sportswoman award for the third year running, believes the back-up divers can meet the expectations in their first major assignment.

Of the 11 divers picked, five – Chew Yi Wei, Danial Sabri, Muhd Nazreen Abdullah (men); Loh Zhiayi and Nur Dhabitah Sabri (women) – are competing in their first Games.

“I am only competing in one event - the 10m platform individual as the coach wants to give Nur Dhabitah a chance to partner Leong Mun Yee to defend the 10m platform synchro title for Malaysia,” said Pandelela.

Breaking News : IBSC remained champion club in President Cup 2013 at Hang Jebat pool in Malacca

After 3 intensive days on competition, IBSC remained the Champion Club in retaining its title in the 32nd National Inter-Club Swimming Championships 2013 at the Hang Jebat Aquatic Centre in Malacca today.

With a wide comfortable winning margin, IBSC topped the chart with 1033 points, followed by PADE 584 points and Penang Swimming Club with 453.5 points.

Congratulations to all winners and we thank all IBSC swimmers who have contributed points to launch our club to the top.

Top 12 clubs with highest points

IBSC President Mr Teo receiving the President Cup trophy

Team IBSC consisting of 90 swimmers to President Cup 2013

More detail updates to follow soon. Keep logging on!

The NST : AQUATICS: Pandelela, Bego safe medal bets

By Ajitpal Singh

DIVER Pandelela Rinong and swimmer Daniel Bego have set personal goals at next month's Sea Games in Myanmar.

While Pandelela will be gunning for a fifth gold medal in her fourth Sea Games appearance, Daniel, who missed the 2011 edition in Indonesia due to injury, hopes to make up for lost time in his fifth outing.

A bronze medallist in last year's London Olympics, Pandelela came back from her training base in Guangzhou for Universiti Malaya's awards function on Tuesday.

Pandelela, a second semester sports science undergraduate, was crowned the university's Sportswoman of the Year for her achievements last year.

"This award will inspire me to try my best in the Sea Games. I am delighted to have won it," said Pandelela, who was ranked second overall in the recent World Series, on Tuesday.

Pandelela made a winning Sea Games debut with Cheong Jun Hoong in the 2007 Korat Games before clinching two titles (platform individual and synchro (with Leong Mun Yee) in Laos (2009) followed by a win in the platform individual two years ago in Indonesia.

Bego was the star performer for Malaysia when he bagged five gold medals, four of them in record time, at the 2009 edition in Laos.

However, the 24-year-old had to lay off swimming for more than a year after undergoing surgery on his shoulders in 2011. He missed the 2011 Sea Games in Indonesia and also failed to qualify for last year's London Olympics.

He had to go for a third surgery to correct a long-standing bone spur problem in his right shoulder.
"I wouldn't say I am at my best form but it is getting near to where I was in the past. It was tough getting back from the injury," said Bego, who made his Sea Games debut in Hanoi a decade ago.

He achieved his Sea Games breakthrough in the 2005 Manila edition with wins in the 200m freestyle and 100 butterfly events. He repeated his feat two years later in Korat.

In Myanmar, he will compete in four individual events - 100m, 200m, 400 freestyle; and 100m butterfly along with several relay events.

Bego, however, will face tough opposition in Singapore's Joseph Schooling, who trains in the United States, in the freestyle and butterfly events. Schooling, 18, is aiming for seven gold.

Bego is just a title short to make a perfect 10-gold in the Sea Games. He has a good chance of achieving it in the 400m freestyle, judging from his performance in the recent FINA World Cup, where he finished sixth in the final.


Read more: AQUATICS: Pandelela, Bego safe medal bets - Other - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/sports/other/aquatics-pandelela-bego-safe-medal-bets-1.407086#ixzz2lFcJmWEa

The Star : Swimmer Daniel’s got a point to prove

By Lim Teik Huat

PETALING JAYA: After lying low for almost two years, Daniel Bego has good reason to make a big splash when he sets his foot in Naypyitaw for the SEA Games swimming competition next month.

National swimmer Daniel Bego wants to prove he can still win at the SEA Games in Myanmar next month after recovering from shoulder injury that caused him to miss the last Games in Indonesia. - Filepic

Daniel is just one short of an impressive tally of 10 individual gold medals from the SEA Games.

And the 24-year-old is determined to make up for lost time after undergoing two shoulder surgeries to correct a long-standing bone spur problem which prevented him from defending his titles at the last SEA Games in Indonesia.

Daniel made his SEA Games debut in Hanoi in 2003 but it was in Manila two years later that he started to make his presence felt with victories in the 200m freestyle and 100m butterfly.

The Sarawakian successfully defended the two titles in Korat in 2007 but it was at the Laos SEA Games two years later that he made ripples in the pool.

Daniel splashed to five gold medals in Vientiane, winning the 100m, 200m and 400m freestyle, and 100m and 200m butterfly. Four of the victories came along with SEA Games records.

From a rollercoaster high, his career then took a massive dip when he had to go through a long rehabilitation period to let his shoulders heal.

Daniel had to give up participation in the 2011 SEA Games and a chance to make his second Olympic appearance in London as well last year.

This is why Daniel can consider half the battle is already won as he looks forward to his fifth SEA Games appearance.

”I am just relieved I am going to the SEA Games again.

”It was a tough period when I had to lay off the pool for some time to let my shoulders recover properly.

”The coach (Paul Birmingham) says I missed tons of training and he is right.

”It took me some time to get my speed back to a decent level and there were times when I doubted myself, whether I could do it again,” said Daniel, who underlined his intentions ahead of his return to the SEA Games scene with a strong performance in the FINA Swimming World Cup short course meet in Singapore recently.

Daniel managed to qualify for the 400m freestyle final en route to finishing sixth.

Daniel has been entered for four individual events in Myanmar - 100m, 200m and 400m freestyle as well as the 100m butterfly.

The 200m butterfly has been dropped from the programme but Daniel would not have had much chance against World Championships semi-finalist Joseph Schooling of Singapore, who has openly declared his intention to rule the pool by raking in a possible tally of seven individual golds.

If anything, the 400m freestyle offers Daniel the strongest chance of bringing his gold medal collection to 10 but for now he is just set on enjoying himself in the pool.

”I am looking forward to racing at the SEA Games again. There are faster swimmers out there but I am not worried at this point. I can only prepare the best I can for the competition,” added Daniel, who holds five national swimming records (100m, 200m and 400m freestyle, and 100m and 200m butterfly).

Aquatics have been singled out as the biggest gold medal contributor in Myanmar during the team managers’ meeting to finalise the Malaysian contingent recently.

Swimming and diving are expected to deliver nothing less than 10 gold medals this time to help the Malaysian contingent reach the target of 40.

Berita Harian : Daniel Bego tak sabar beraksi

Kuala Lumpur: Kali terakhir menghadiahkan lima pingat emas kepada Malaysia di Sukan SEA 2009, kemunculan Daniel Bego di Myanmar pastinya ditunggu-tunggu selepas 'tersisih' di temasya dwitahunan itu di Indonesia, dua tahun lalu.

Daniel terpaksa menjalani pembedahan di kedua-dua bahunya pada dua tahun lalu selepas doktor mengesan terdapat lebihan tulang sekali gus menyebabkan dia terlepas beraksi di Indonesia dan mempertahankan kelima-lima emas yang dimenanginya.

“Sekarang ini sakit itu makin kurang. Saya bagaimanapun tidak mahu meletak harapan tinggi untuk mengulangi pencapaian di Laos kerana saya yakin tahap pertandingan makin meningkat dan persaingan lebih kompetitif,” kata perenang kelahiran Sarawak itu.

Pada Sukan SEA 2009, Daniel mengocak kolam renang dengan memenangi emas dalam acara 100 meter (m), 200m dan 400m gaya bebas, serta 100m dan 200m kuak kupu-kupu serta pingat gangsa 4x200m rampaian gaya bebas.

Gerun lawan

Sementara itu, walaupun hanya mengambil satu acara - 10m platform individu - tetapi kehadiran ratu terjun negara Pandelela Rinong diharap mampu menggerunkan penerjun negara lain dan menjadi motivasi tambahan kepada rakan lain.

Pada kemunculan sulung Pandelela pada temasya dwitahunan itu di Korat 2007, Pandelela memperoleh satu pingat perak (10m platform individu) serta memperoleh dua emas 10m platform individu dan 10m platform seirama di Laos (2009) serta Palembang (2011).

Pada temasya kali ini, pemenang gangsa Sukan Olimpik London itu tidak akan menyertai acara 10m platform seirama dengan gandingannya, Leong Mun Yee yang akan tampil bergandingan dengan pasangan baru antara Nur Dhabitah Sabri atau Loh Zhiayi.

IBSC Team Briefing for President Cup 2013

See briefing updates here.

The NST : SEA GAMES: No great expectations

REALISTIC: Official target of 40 gold medals set for Myanmar Sea Games

AN  official target of 40 gold medals has been set for the national contingent heading to next month's Myanmar Sea Games.

Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who met with Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) officials and Sea Games team managers in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, said the figure was realistic, considering the various factors involved.

To date, 579 athletes from 29 sports have been confirmed to compete in the biennial event.

"Based on evaluations done by the National Sports Council, OCM and the national sports associations (NSA) involved, the target for the Sea Games this year is 40 gold medals from the 217 on offer," said Khairy.

"We have to moderate our expectations for this edition as a number of sports are not being included this year.

"In total, 28 gold medals that we have won before (in Indonesia) are not on offer at these games and had to be removed from our target."

Sports that have been earmarked to deliver gold are swimming (3), diving (8), road cycling (1), weightlifting (1), football (1), hockey (2), muay (1), karate (6), archery (3), shooting (1), athletics (5), sailing (2), silat (3) and wushu (3).

NSC previously set a target of 40 to 45 gold at the 2011 edition in Palembang and Jakarta, Indonesia.
Malaysia went on to win 59 gold, 50 silver and 82 bronze to fall just short of a separate 60-gold medal target set by the NSAs.

Events that contributed gold in Indonesia but are not part of the Myanmar edition are aquatics (8), track cycling (7), fencing (2), shooting (2), tenpin bowling (5) and water-skiing (4).

Khairy added that security in Myanmar is not a problem at the present, but it is being constantly monitored.
He also voiced his preference for athletes to travel straight to Naypyitaw by air.

"So far, our preparations for the Games are going on as usual and there have been no changes to our programme.

"We are constantly monitoring the situation in Myanmar via information from the (Myanmar) authorities and various other sources.

"If possible, I want our athletes to fly straight to Naypyitaw without having to travel by road from Yangon.
"However, that depends on the outcome of my discussion with our national carriers."

Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin meets Olympic Council of Malaysia officials and Sea Games team managers in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. Pic by Hasriyasyah Sabudin

The NST : Bego encouraged by Singapore show

By Ajitpal Singh

DANIEL Bego received an early boost ahead of next month's Myanmar Sea Games by finishing strongly in the ongoing FINA Swimming World Cup short-course meet in Singapore.

Bego, who was the star performer for Malaysia when he bagged five gold medals in the 2009 Laos Sea Games, managed to qualify for the men's 400m freestyle final en route to finishing sixth in 3:50.87. World 50m record holder Robert Hurley of Australia won the gold in 3:38.68.

Bego was five seconds slower in the heats but sneaked into the final by narrowly beating compatriot Vernon Lee (3:55.84).

The Sarawak swimmer had to lay off the sport for more than a year after undergoing surgery on both his shoulders in 2011. He missed the 2011 Sea Games in Indonesia and also failed to qualify for last year's London Olympics.

Bego had to go for a third surgery to correct a long-standing bone spur problem in his right shoulder and only returned to competition in February.

Bego, however, has been showing signs of returning to his best in several meets this year. He bagged his first title in the 100m butterfly at the Malaysian Open in May.

He then continued his momentum at the World University Games, posting 50.86 in the 100m freestyle to qualify for the Sea Games.

Compatriots Christina Loh, Khoo Cai Lin and Yap See Tuan also posted top eight finishes in Singapore. Christina clocked 1:08.94 to settle for fifth in the women's 100m breaststroke, five seconds behind gold medallist Alia Atkinson of Jamaica (1:03.48).

See Tuan (2:14.53) and Cai Lin (8:42.73) finished seventh in the men's 200m breaststroke and women's 800m freestyle respectively.


Read more: Bego encouraged by Singapore show - Other - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/sports/other/bego-encouraged-by-singapore-show-1.394019#ixzz2jwsD2POn

The Star Online : Daniel's all set to make SEA Games return

PETALING JAYA: Swimmer Daniel Bego underlined his intentions ahead of his return to the SEA Games scene in Myanmar next month with a strong performance in the FINA Swimming World Cup short course meet in Singapore.

The 24-year-old, who missed the last SEA Games in Indonesia to recover from a shoulder operation, managed to qualify for the 400m freestyle final en route to finishing sixth in 3:50.87. 50m backstroke short course world record holder Robert Hurley of Australia won the event in 3:38.68.

Daniel was about five seconds slower in Wednesday morning’s heat and narrowly beat compatriot Vernon Lee (3:55.84) to sneak into the final as the eighth and last qualifier on 3:55.52.

The Sarawakian is best remembered for his five gold medal splash at the Laos SEA Games in 2009, winning the 100m, 200m and 400m freestyle, and 100m and 200m butterfly. Four of the victories came along with SEA Games records.

Daniel will surely be out to make up for lost time after undergoing two shoulder surgeries to correct a long-standing bone spur problem that prevented him from defending his titles at the last SEA Games.

He only returned to competitive action early this year after a long period of rehabilitation and the first sign of improvement was when he bagged his first gold medal in the 100m butterfly at the Malaysian Open in May.

He then continued his momentum at the Kazan Universiade, clocking a good time of 50.86 in the 100m freestyle to qualify for SEA Games.

The Myanmar SEA Games qualifying mark is based on the silver medal time from the previous edition in Palembang (50.92) and it was refreshing to see Daniel posting his season best in Kazan.

Daniel was not the only national swimmer to impress on the first day as Christina Loh, Khoo Cai Lin and Yap See Tuan also posted top eight finishes, too.

Christina, who is entrusted with replacing Siow Yi Ting as breaststroke queen of the region, touched the wall at 1:08.94 to settle for a strong fifth in the women’s 100m breaststroke, five seconds behind winner Alia Atkinson of Jamaica (1:03.48).

See Tuan (2:14.53) and Cai Lin (8:42.73) finished seventh respectively in the men’s 200m breaststroke and women’s 800m freestyle.

National coach Paul Birmingham wants the swimmers to participate in some races to build up their competitive spirit ahead of the Myanmar SEA Games where they will renew their rivalry with regional counterparts.

Short course timings on a 25m pool are generally faster than those set on long course as the swimmers get extra speed when they push off the wall.

Selamat Menyambut Awal Muharam