MALAYSIA: Wan Yuen makes successful comeback to competition

By LIM TEIK HUAT
Wednesday September 9, 2009


PETALING JAYA: Former Olympian Lee Wan Yuen is making a surprise comeback to competition in a bid to win the SEA Games taekwondo women’s heavyweight gold medal for the third time in Laos in December.

Wan Yuen secured a place in the team for the Games by winning in the category at the national selection trials in Bukit Jalil last week.

The 32-year-old mother of an eight-year-old boy had stayed out of competitions after quitting the national team five years ago to raise a family.
Wan Yuen: “ I am not satisfied yet as I failed to win gold in my last outing in the SEA Games.”

“Many people were surprised by the fact that I entered for the national selection trials. But I won against younger exponents and Sukma (Malaysia Games) gold medallists,” she said.

“I would not dare to accept the invitation to compete in another SEA Games if I had not proven my worth. I have never shied away from a challenge and I want to see whether I can still win a third gold medal.

“Frankly I am not satisfied yet as I failed to win gold in my last outing in the SEA Games (she took silver in Hanoi in 2003.”

Wan Yuen was a top heavyweight exponent to be reckoned with in the region. She was the SEA Games gold medallist in Jakarta in 1997 and Brunei two years later.

At the higher level, Wan Yuen took silver in the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok and she made history as the first Malaysian taekwondo exponent to compete in the Olympics – in Sydney in 2000.

She took a break for one year to get married and have a baby and made a successful return to competition by taking bronze in the 2002 Busan Asiad.

“I have to thank the national coach (R. Dhanaraj) and the National Sports Council (NSC) for giving me the chance to see action again at the SEA Games level,” she said.

“The coach felt that with my experience, I can still be competitive at the SEA Games level. My physical condition is not up to mark yet but I can work on this before we go to Laos.”

Malaysia will have a team of 12 exponents for the Laos Games.

The women’s exponents include 2007 Korat Games gold medallists Elaine Teo and Che Chew Chan. The others are Nurul Asmfalina Mohd Bohari, Nurul Nadia Mahamat, Denise Kok and Nor Idayu Mohd Remey.

The male fighters in the team are Ryan Chong, Rusfredy Petrus, Harith Feizal Mat Nor, Mohd Affifuddin Sidek and Chu Jensen.


Source : http://thestar.com.my

MALAYSIA: MTF questions MTA’s re-registration

2007/07/31




THE Malaysian Taekwondo Association (MTA) technically remains a de-registered body as Sports Commissioner (SC) Tan Sri Elyas Omar has not withdrawn the de-registration, the Malaysian Taekwondo Federation (MTF) alleged yesterday.

In a statement released to Bernama, MTF president Datuk Mohamed Nazim Razak (pic) questioned MTA’s reinstatement as it was legally untenable.

"On the issue of the de-registration of MTA, we are made to understand that following their appeal to the Sports Minister (Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said), the SC is agreeable to withdraw the de-registration subject to certain conditions, which includes amendments to its constitution.

"The SC has yet to withdraw the de-registration and technically MTA is still currently a de-registered body. There are also pending proceedings in court and to our knowledge, there has been no judicial pronouncement reversing the earlier decision of the SC in de-registering MTA."

The statement also pointed out that MTF and the Malaysia Taekwondo Clubs Association are registered under the Sports Development Act.

"In the event the de-registration of MTA has been revoked, we see two possible scenarios. Firstly, MTA is the governing body for international events and MTF is the governing body for State and National events and the second scenario is to merge the two entities combining the two constitutions under the auspices of the Sports Commissioner.

"This was proposed during a roundtable discussion chaired by the Minister." — Bernama

Source: http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: Azalina: MTF, MTCA recognised

By : K.M. Boopathy
2007/07/28


SPORTS Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has urged the Malaysia Taekwondo Association (MTA) to adopt an open selection system instead of setting conditions that stop exponents from other associations representing the nation.

Azalina said there should be a mechanism that allows the best to represent Malaysia, and not just those affiliated to MTA, just because they are recognised by the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).

An open selection process, said Azalina, is the best way as it will give exponents from other registered taekwondo associations — Malaysia Taekwondo Federation (MTF), Malaysia Taekwondo Clubs Association (MTCA) and Malaysian International Taekwondo Federation — the opportunity to prove themselves and represent Malaysia.

MTA president Ho Kham Phaw said on Thursday that the national body is willing to have open trials for tournaments, but exponents selected would have to be affiliated with them to be considered for international duties.

He had said that MTF and MTCA are not recognised bodies, but Azalina said the topic doesn’t arise as they are registered with the Sports Commissioner’s Office under the Sports Development Act (1997) and have the liberty to continue functioning.

"We accepted MTA with the condition they must have an open policy when it comes to the selection process where taekwondo exponents from other bodies, including MTF, MTCA and also ITF, should be given equal chance," said Azalina.

"MTA is recognised internationally (by WTF) to run the sport in the country, but that doesn’t mean we have to terminate the other bodies. It just doesn’t work that way.

"I don’t agree that only MTA members can represent the country and they must have a liberal system that everyone is given a fair chance to represent the country.

"The open system should involve trials where all the exponents, including the ones under the ITF system, are also given the opportunity.

"Taekwondo cannot be just one form. We must allow the other associations to run. MTF and MTCA have been registered under the Sports Development Act and are recognised bodies and they should continue their functioning.

"We hope that they can sit together and solve the matter."

Azalina hopes MTA will not suppress the efforts of the others to develop the sport, as this is one of the main reasons that led to the association’s de-registration in May, 2005.

Taekwondo has been given a chance, as Azalina said, to put itself on the right footing, and the sport should not let the chance go.

Source: http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: Clubs uneasy with MTA’s conditions

2007/07/28

THE Malaysia Taekwondo Clubs Association (MTCA) wants the Malaysia Taekwondo Association (MTA) to review its request for clubs to join the national body based on its terms and conditions.

"We laud the decision of Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said to re-register the MTA but there are several issues which MTA president Ho Kham Phaw raised that need to be addressed and clarified.

"We also beg to differ with Kham Phaw’s statement that the MTCA is not a recognised body as we are registered with the Sports Commissioner’s Office under the Sports Development Act (1997).

"Our registration was approved by Tan Sri Elyas Omar on July 1, 2005 and our constitution states that the MTCA is the controlling body for all taekwondo clubs in Malaysia," said MTCA president Chee Hock Choong in a statement yesterday.

"While we may not be a member of the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF), we are legally registered in accordance with the laws of Malaysia."

The primary reason for the creation of the MTCA was to give taekwondo clubs an umbrella to shelter under following the deregistration of the MTA on May 6, 2005.

"While the initial members of MTCA were former associate members of MTA, our membership has been growing steadily and as the controlling body of taekwondo clubs in Malaysia, MTCA is now the legal body to develop taekwondo at the clubs level in the country," said Chee, adding that a thriving club structure, which taekwondo has, was also the vision of Azalina’s and that the MTCA is actually the first national level club association.

"However, I would like to stress that MTCA is ever willing to work with anybody to develop taekwondo in Malaysia but, again, I have to refute the MTA president’s statement that no conditions have been attached for clubs rejoining it.

Former associate members received a document from MTA inviting them to rejoin by July 31, 2007, which by itself is a condition as it was stated that failure to do so would be deemed that the associate members are not interested in rejoining MTA.

The document also came with 10 other conditions, among which was: "That an associate member’s privileges shall be decided by the MTA Council from time to time."

Given their fraught relationship previously, this condition, among several others, had made the MTCA and its affiliates uneasy, he said. — Bernama


source: http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: MTA ‘open’ to all clubs now

By : Ajitpal Singh

THE Malaysia Taekwondo Association (MTA), has decided to accept all clubs as associate members with no conditions attached.

Those who decide to take up the offer have until July 31 to do so.

MTA president Ho Kam Phaw said these clubs will have one representation in the council.

"One vote is guaranteed for the clubs in the council and they are free to stand for elections," Kam Phaw told reporters after the joint-working committee meeting with the National Sports Council (NSC) in Bukit Jalil yesterday.

"We have sent out the invitation forms to our ex-associate members who are now either under the Malaysia Taekwondo Federation (MTF) or the Malaysia Taekwondo Clubs Association (MTCA) three years weeks ago, and we hope to get a favourable response from them soon.

"We hope all of them will accept the invitation as we need to concentrate on developing the sport."

It is learnt that only two clubs have responded to the invitation. However MTA is confident more clubs will join soon.

However, he stressed that those accepting the MTA's invitation will be representing themselves in the association and not MTF or MTCA.

"MTF and MTCA are not recognised bodies. We are the legal body for the sport in the country."

However MTF and MTCA are registered with the Sports Commissioner's Office under the Sports Development Act (1997) and it was stated earlier that all three would work together.

Kam Phaw also said exponents from all clubs are free to attend trials for international assignments, organised by MTA.

"Trials are open to all but if a particular exponent is selected, then the club he is representing must be affiliated with MTA.

"However, there are options for those selected to represent the country, such as joining a registered club or their respective state associations."

MTA will be organising a trial to pick 10 exponents for the Asian Junior Championships in Jordan on Aug 20-26 at the NSC on Sunday.

The trial is open to all clubs, regardless of their current affiliation.

MTA was deregistered by Sports Commissioner Tan Sri Elyas Omar in May, 2005 under the Sports Development Act. MTA pursued the matter in court but Sports Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said recently said the deregistration would be rescinded based on an appeal.

Azalina had said then that MTA's deregistration would be revoked if certain conditions are met. However, what the conditions are remain unknown.

Meanwhile, NSC director general Datuk Zolkples Embong said MTA will be responsible for all athletes' preparation for international assignments.

"We will be working with them in preparing athletes for the Beijing Olympic qualifiers and the Korat Sea Games (Dec 6-15)."

The Olympic Qualifiers will be held in Manchester, England (Aug 28-29) and Vietnam (Nov 28-29).

The exponents under the elite programme are Rusfredy Tokan Petrus, Mohd Afifuddin Omar Sidek, Ryan Chong, Che Chew Chan, Elaine Teo, Nurul Nadia Mahamat, Noordiana Norrizan and Noornadia Norrizan.

Source: http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: Elaine, Ryan aim to bring on the sunshine

NATIONAL taekwondo exponents Elaine Teoh and Ryan Chong hope to shine on the international stage after the Malaysian Taekwondo Association were given a new lease on life.

Elaine and Ryan fought their way to the gold medal in their respective flyweight categories at the Selangor International Championships at the Stadium Malawati in Shah Alam yesterday as if reinvigorated by MTA’s revival.

"I hope this is the end of their problems and that everything goes on smoothly from now. It hurts to miss the Asian Games last year because of MTA’s de-registration," said Elaine after defeating Selangor’s Nurul Asfahlina Mohd Johari in the final.

Elaine, 26, who won gold in the Hong Kong Open and silver in the Vietnam Open this year, is focused on getting through the Olympic qualifiers in Manchester later this year.

"Qualifying for the Beijing Olympics is my biggest goal this year but I would also like to regain the Sea Games gold I lost in Manila (in 2005)," said Elaine, who won Sea Games gold in 1999 in Brunei and 2001 in Kuala Lumpur.

Ryan, recently promoted to the senior national team from the juniors, is also bent on qualifying for the Olympics and Sea Games but will have to see off the challenge of his senior Rusfredy Tokan Petrus.

"Rusfredy and I both compete in the flyweight but I will train hard so that I can get a chance to compete in the qualifiers and the Sea Games," said Ryan, 19, who won silver in the Hong Kong Open.

Ryan recovered from an early deficit in the three-round final bout to beat Australia’s Taner Hikmet while two other national exponents - Mohd Afifudin Omar Sidek (men’s bantamweight) and Nurul Nadia Mahamat (women’s featherweight) - also won gold.

Malaysian Taekwondo Federation’s A. Logaraj won the men’s finweight title while Cemerlang’s Chen Hon Way dominated the first two rounds to cruise to a 5-0 win over Sri Lanka’s R.B.A.Bandara in the men’s lightweigh final.

Exponents from Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Malaysian national team, and Selangor and local taekwondo clubs took part in the two-day meet which also saw action in the 10-13 and 14-17 age group categories.

Cemerlang Taekwondo Martial Arts (six), Gemilang Taekwondo Clun (five), Bangsar Taekwondo and Fitness Club (four) and Koryosa Taekwondo Club (four) were the big winners in the junior categories.

RESULTS - Open Men’s Fin: 1 A. Logaraj (MTF); 2 Muhd Haziq Hazwan Yusof (Cemerlang); 3 Fitri Yulianto (Ina), Wong Chi Hang (HK); Fly: 1 Ryan Chong (NSC); 2 Taner Hikmet (Aus); 3 Dana Kristianda (Ina), Sampath Alahakoon (SL); Bantam: 1 Mohd Afifudin (NSC); 2 Gerry Rangga Vega (Ina); 3 Chen Hon Kit (Cemerlang), Yap Woei Jiun (Sel); Feather: 1 Yeung Tsz Wing (HK); 2 Jeremy Attard (Aus); 3 SAD Dilruk (SL), Kieran Omeara (Aus); Light: 1 Chen Hon Way (Cemerlang); 2 RBA Bandara (SL); 3 Tham Yip Hon (MTF), Nizam Iskar (Gemilang); Welter: 1 Yap Juhn Yhee (TL); 2 Nicholas Nathan (Sel); 3 RMPR Rajapakse (SL); Tan Soon Keat (MTF); Middle: 1 GG Kumara (SL); 2 Samsan Kumara (SL); Cheong Yuen Wai (MTF), Friekey Jinlis (Gemilang); Heavy: 1 Lee Kee Tat (TL); 2 Kho Chin Han (MTF); P. Ganapathy Rao (Speed), Ravinder Singh (Cemerlang).

Women’s Fin: 1 Astrid Rizky Amelia (Ina); 2 Chen Mei Fung (Ina); 3 Nilanthi Kumari (SL), Niluka Kanthi (SL); Fly: 1 Elaine Teoh (NSC); 2 Nurul Asfahlina Johari (Sel); 3 Nurina Mustika Sundoro (Ina), Kam Bao Juan (Win Long); Bantam: 1 Jessica Jordan (Aus); 2 Denise Kok Mei Suet (Sel); 3 Agatha Lena Rivaldi (Ina), Sharifah Mariam Alawiyah (Sel); Feather: 1 Nurul Nadia Mahamat (NSC); 2 PMAG Sandamali (SL); 3 Crystal Naimith (Aus), Kristy Compton (Aus); Light: 1 Nur Aine Abu Bakar (Sel), 2 Kayla Chow (Can); 3 Fitriani Mansur (Ina), Brandi Strefel (Can); Welter: 1 Siti Rahmah Nasir (Gemilang); 2 Hue Seow Ching (MTF); Middle: 1 Emilia Shafinaz Faizal (NS Academy); 2 Shilpa Shimoga Gangadar (Ind); 3 Meilan Simamofa (Ina); Heavy: 1 Tiana Sylvia Collins (Can); 2 Nadea Deliza Soplantia (Ina); 3 Zatil Akmal (Viva), R. Vikneswary (Sel).

Source: Http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: MTA, MTF expected to merge soon

2007/07/08

The Malaysian Taekwondo Association (MTA) and Malaysian Taekwondo Federation (MTF) are expected to merge once the Sports Commissioner’s Office irons out constitutional matters regarding the merger.

MTF vice-president Foong Wing Mon said when this is resolved, the new entity would register with the Sports Commissioner’s Office and hold a general meeting to elect new office bearers.

"When this happens, there will only be a single body to represent the interests of taekwondo exponents in the country. We are only awaiting further instructions from the Sports Commissioner’s Office," he said yesterday.

Foong said this when asked to comment on the MTA, which has been allowed to be active again after it made an appeal to Sports Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said on Wednesday.

Sports Commissioner Tan Sri Elyas Omar had ordered the MTA to be deregistered on May 6, 2005 on the grounds that it was hampering the development of the sport.
According to Foong, efforts to revive the MTA were made three weeks ago following a meeting involving it, the MTF, the Malaysia Taekwondo Clubs Association and Azalina.

"In the meeting, Azalina pointed out that the MTA held the licence for any international participation by Malaysian exponents while the MTF looked after the sport in the country.

"Azalina described the MTA and MTF relationship akin to that of "a husband and wife". MTA and MTF agreed with her view and furthermore, the issues affecting the two organisations did not involve the members but a few officials only," he said.

Following the meeting, Azalina asked the Sports Commissioner’s Office to call the parties concerned to do the necessary to unite taekwondo exponents in the country under a single national sports association (NSA). — Bernama

Source: http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: Azalina accepts appeal, MTA now back in business

Friday July 6, 2007

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Taekwondo Association have been accorded their original status following withdrawal of the revocation of their registration two years ago.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Azalina Othman Said said in a statement yesterday that she had accepted the MTA's appeal, which was accompanied by several pledges that she believed were sincere.

Sports Commissioner Tan Sri Elyas Omar had revoked the MTA's registration on May 6, 2005 on grounds that the association had hindered the development of the sport and in the public interest as provided under Section 20 (1) (e) of the Sports Development Act 1997.

Meanwhile, the MTA president, Ho Kam Paw, said that they were deeply touched by Azalina's decision and planned to continue their endeavour to develop the sport in the country.

He said that their first task was to meet the Olympic Council of Malaysia to express their intention to send a team to compete at the SEA Games in Korat in December. – Bernama

Source from http://www.thestar.com.my

MALAYSIA: It’s wise to start them young - Datuk Azalina

Thursday March 29, 2007

It’s wise to start them young By STUART MICHAEL CLUBS have been urged to play a more active role in organising junior competitions.

The call was made by Sports minister Datuk Azalina Othman Said at the launch of Nestle- Koko Krunch Junior Taekwondo Championship at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil recently.

She commended the Malaysian Taekwondo Clubs Association (MTCA) for initiating the championships for the second consecutive year.

Lethal: Azalina breaking a board with a kick at the launch.

“Competitions will provide early exposure as well as instilling the spirit of winning and competitiveness at grassroots.

“More importantly, we want to see sports associations secure their own funding and active clubs to do it as well,” Azalina said.

Last year, the MTCA only organised one competition. But this year, they have opted to one each in Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

The Kuala Lumpur championships will be held at the Kuala Lumpur Badminton Stadium in Cheras on April 21 while the championships in Penang will be at USM on May 12.

The championships is for boys and girls aged from nine to 12.

Nestle Malaysia Human Resources director A Wahab Bakar said they were happy to be part of the championships.

“The championships was a big success last year. We had no qualms about supporting the championships.

“Nothing is more important than grooming youngsters for the future. We have to start producing top quality athletes young and nurture them with good nutrition as they are the young generation of today to build a strong foundation for the leaders of tomorrow,” he said.

A group of juniors from MTCA also displayed their skills at the launch.

Source from http://thestar.com.my/

MALAYSIA - SABAH: Taekwondo co-curriculum to continue : Masidi

07 March, 2007

Kota Kinabalu: The Youth and Sports Ministry on Tuesday said that they are allowing schools to continue with the taekwondo co-curriculum because they cannot wait for the court to decide the fate of de-registered Malaysia Taekwondo Association (MTA).

Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said the self-defence training and programme would be under the supervision of the United Sabah Taekwondo Association (Usta).
Training of more than 10,000 taekwondo trainees in schools throughout Sabah were disrupted when the MTA was de-registered in May, 2005.

"But we cannot wait for the court's decision on the MTA. That's why we are allowing the training session to resume back to normal under the State's taekwondo body supervision," he said during a courtesy call from Usta at his office in Wisma Muis.

The Minister-in-charge of education said if they continue to wait for the court's decision, inevitably, the development of the sport in the schools in Sabah would be paralysed.
He said that the disruption of training of more than 10,000 exponents is causing a big impact to the development of taekwondo.

However, Masidi said they would be monitoring the case which is being pursued by former leaders of the MTA.

He commended Usta for taking the initiative to become a member of the Malaysian Taekwondo Federation (MTF), an association recognised by the Malaysia Sports Commission, National Sports Council, Federal Youth and Sports Ministry and Federal Education Ministry.

He said his Ministry also gives recognition with the authority of Usta as a member of the MTF.

"Usta is the only (taekwondo) association (in Sabah) given absolute authority to supervise the development of the sport in the state particularly in the schools," he said.

Masidi said the priority given by Usta in the development of the athletes is a move that should be welcomed as Sabah prepares for Sukma (Malaysia Games) 2008.

In this respect, he expressed hope that the schools and taekwondo associations at district level would render full cooperation to Usta to enable the latter to continue with its development programmes.

Usta President Datuk David Chong Ket Sui said the association has to date more than 30,000 membership that have also subsequently gained membership with the MTF on Sept 29, last year.

After becoming a member with the MTF, he said Usta has referred with the Sabah Education Department to issue a circulation letter dated Sept 4, 2006 to inform all primary and secondary schools not to be involved with activities that are related with the MTA.

He thanked Sabah Education Department Director Normah Gagoh and the department including Assistant Director of Co-curriculum and Sports Unit, Tham Yun Fook and Human Development Management Sector for their cooperation.

He said Usta was given a letter dated Jan 10, 2007 from the Education Department giving them the authority to handle training in the schools.

Source from http://www.dailyexpress.com.my

MALAYSIA: Sports body offers awards

THE Selangor Taekwondo Association in collaboration with Seafield International Institute is offering 100 scholarships worth RM1.35mil for studies at the institution.

According to association president C.K. Karan, the scholarships are open to Malaysian students who have completed the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia and are members of the association.
The scholarship fund, he said, was set up in recognition of members who had contributed to the state in the past and to promote sports today.

The institute's business development director, Dr Raymond Samy, said the move was good for the development of sports in the country.
The institute offers diploma programmes in Business Management, Information Technology and Accounting.

For details, call 03-5631 2024 (Cik Ayu) or e-mail inquiry@sfi.edu.my.

Source from http://thestar.com.my

MALAYSIA: MARTIAL ARTS/Year In Review: It was a mediocre year by any standard

S.Selvam
Dec 27

IF results of the Philippines Sea Games are a benchmark, then, 2005 will go down as a mediocre year for martial arts in the country.

With some 80 gold medals at stake for the five martial art sports - judo, karate-do, silat, taekwondo and wushu - the national contingent returned with just nine gold medals, and many silvers and bronzes.

Biased judging may be the convenient excuse for the poor haul, but I believe this excuse will also be given when Thailand hosts the Games in 2007.

For that is the nature of the sport - subjective. In fact, that is what makes the sport, to some extent, appealing to its practitioners as well.

In the Philippines, karate emerged as the biggest contributors with four gold medals, while silat and taekwondo returned with three and two gold medals, respectively. In fact, these three sports actually met their respective targets.

While wushu atoned for its "Manila nightmare" by bagging four gold medals in the last week's World Championships, judo's poor run in the Sea Games needs to be looked into seriously.

Granted that the sport does not enjoy the massive support and status that taekwondo and karate enjoy, but the last time judo won a Sea Games gold medal was in 1981, and surely 24 years is enough time to arrest whatever decline the sport had suffered.

Then there is taekwondo, an Olympic sport. Unfortunately, this is one Olympic sport that will soon find itself losing its popularity and support if it continues on in its present path.

In fact, one can write a book on taekwondo's problems and on the antics of its officials.

Last year's Sportswoman of the Year and Olympian Elaine Teo bungled so badly in Manila that, and if it wasn't for the heroics of little known Rusfredy Tokan Petrus, taekwondo would not have met its two-gold medal target.

Elaine bungled because it was based on her request that the national coaches, the National Sports Council and the Olympic Council of Malaysia endorsed the decision to put her in a heavier category simply because she was confident of winning the gold medal in that category.

Furthermore, with a Thai Olympic bronze medallist in her original category, Elaine felt she did not have a chance to win.

This coming from an athlete who has been identified as medallist in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games next year!

Having said that, taekwondo is also one sport where Southeast Asians, judging by the number of quality opponents and Olympic and World medallists, are world class.

The exponents from Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Indonesia have produced medallists at the World and Olympic stage, and as such, no matter how much running Malaysian exponents do, they are bound to meet a world class opponent at the Sea Games level.

On the administration front, the de-registration of the Malaysian Taekwondo Asociation (MTA) saw law suits and police reports being lodged at a furious pace.

And while certain parties seem to emphasise that the young exponents and the sport are the ones suffering, they (warring parties) are the ones actually doing all the damage.

As for karate, national coach P. Arivalagan should be given some credit for his boldness in stating that the team was good for seven gold medals in Manila.

Although only four was the final tally, won, Arivalagan's stand is refreshing given Malaysian sport officials' nature of being too conservative with their medal predictions for fear of not meeting the target.

And come 2006, with the Asian Games coming up in December, you can bet that biased judging will rear its head again and officials will be singing the same old tune.

Source from http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA:Koryo girls score big in Inter-Club

K.M. BOOPATHY
Dec 19

KORYO Taekwondo Academy made fine start in the inaugural NSC-Milo-MTCA Inter-Club Taekwondo Championships grabbing five gold medals at the National Sports Council’s gymnasium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.


Koryo were dominant in the Girls’ 14-17 category where they took five of 10 gold medals on offer with multiple national junior champion Koh Jen Li leading the way.

Jen Li clinched the lightweight category beating Seah Kwi San of the Warrior Academy, while Tan Yi Ching of TL Taekwondo Academy and G. Baljhoti settled for bronze.

Koryo also won the finweight gold through Adriana Noryasmin while Nurul Afiqah Harun and Nor Aslinda were victorious in the welterweight and light-middleweight categories respectively.

The fifth gold was delivered by bantamweight Nurul Asfahlina and they can expect more success when the Boys’ 14-17 and Open categories are contested today.

Viva Taekwondo Club (Viva) took two gold medals through the Zulkifli siblings Zulaikha Athirah in the flyweight and Zatil Akmal in the heavyweight categories.

Viva won another gold medal in the Boys’ 10-13 category when K. Sarran Raj won the welterweight.

Terengganu-based Gemilang Academy, Warisan Academy and Bangsar Taekwondo and Fitness Centre (BTFC) won four gold medals each.

Gemilang, who captured 11 gold in the National Junior Championships earlier this year, won three gold medals in the Girls’ 10-13 category.

Wan Nur Alya Afiqah Mustafa won the bantamweight gold, Nur Amalin Aisha Rusdi took the welterweight gold and Nur Dina Shaharuddin won the light heavyweight.

Their fourth gold came in the Boys’ 10-13 category through Azzamuddin Razali in the lightweight event.

Warisan won the Boys’ 10-13 event through Nik Ishraq Hasif in the flyweight, the featherweight through Ahza Syahmi, while Izzati Ahmad (lighweight) and Nik Attilya Hanis (middlweight) delivered in the Girls’ 10-13 age-group.

BTFC won three gold medals through Aiman Nur Najah Kamruzaman (flyweight), Kerry Gan (featherweight) and Fu Hsu Hui (light middleweight), while their fourth gold was delivered by Denise Kok in the Girls’ 14-17 featherweight.


Source from http://www.nst.com.my

MANILA SEA GAMES: Chew Chan regains gold

THE Malaysian taekwondo squad placed their bets on Elaine Teo and Che Chew Chan to deliver the gold medals to meet a two-gold target set for the Manila Games.

Elaine failed to live up to expectations but Chew Chan kept her end of the bargain to deliver the second gold yesterday from the women's middleweight competition.


NO PROBLEM: Taekwondo exponent Che Chew Chan won gold in the middleweight category.


The other gold, an unexpected one, came from Rusfredy Tokan Petrus in the flyweight competition on Tuesday.

On the final day of the taekwondo programme at the Cuneta Astrodome in Manila, Chew Chan romped to a 6-1 victory over the Philippines' Veronica Domingo to claim the gold medal.

The 23-year-old Johorean had seen off the challenge of Vietnam's Tran Thi Ngoc Tram, winning 2-1 in the semi-finals.

Team manager M. Rajendran said: “Chew Chan was expected to bag us a gold in Manila and she did not disappoint us at all.

“She was hardly troubled by her opponent in the final. She was in a class of her own to cruise to an easy victory.”

It was the 23-year-old Chew Chan's third appearance in the SEA Games. She was the gold medallist in the 2001 Games in Kuala Lumpur and took the bronze in Vietnam two years ago.

The team will return home with a haul of 2-0-5.

The men's bronze medallists were Mohd Afifuddin Omar Sidek (bantam), Syed Taufiq Abdul Hamid (feather) and Wong Kai Meng (welter).

The women, who contributed bronze medals were A. Gayathiri (welter) and Noornadia Norrizan (bantam).

Source from http://www.thestar.com.my

MANILA SEA GAMES: Rusfredy cries in joy after conquering Dech in sudden death

Wednesday November 30, 2005

SABAHAN Rusfredy Tokan Petrus shed tears of joy after winning his first SEA Games gold after a nail-biting 5-4 win over Thailand's Dech Sutthikunkarn in sudden death of the men's taekwondo flyweight final at the Cuneta Astrodome in Manila yesterday.

Malaysia won four other bronze medals in the day's competition with the men and the women contributing two each.

The men's medallists were featherweight exponent Syed Taufiq Abdul Hamid and welterweight exponent Wong Kai Meng.

The women's medallists were A. Gayathiri and Noornadia Norrizan in the welterweight and bantamweight divisions respectively.

It was touch-and-go for Rusfredy and Dech and the three-round bout ended with the score tied at 4-4.

In sudden-death, Rusfredy was quick off the mark, finding his target after 15 seconds. He landed the gold medal with a flying kick to his opponent’s chest.

The 24-year-old Rusfredy said: “The visit by the Sports Minister (Datuk Azalina Said Othman) after Elaine Teo's defeat served as inspiration to me.

“She told us not to give up because she still has faith in us winning gold medals.”

It was the second appearance in the SEA Games for Rusfredy. He finished empty handed in Vietnam in 2003 and was determined to do well in Manila.

“The hard work put in during training has paid off. It was tough all the way but I am glad to deliver the gold for Malaysia,” he said proudly.

Source From http://www.thestar.com.my

MANILA SEA GAMES: Elaine falls in first round

Nov 29:

OLYMPIAN and 2004 Sportswoman of The Year Elaine Teo could be the first casualty of the AsiaComm 2006 Special Project squad after she was ditched in the first round of taekwondo's women's bantamweight category at the Cuneta Astrodome in Manila yesterday.

The Sea Games is the benchmark to gauge the progress of the AsiaComm elite athletes, comprising 138 of the country's top athletes, and Elaine's failure to even land a medal may cause her a place in the squad.

While officials from the National Sports Council, and even Sports Minister Datuk Azalina Othman Said, have repeatedly said that performance, more than medals, is what counts in Manila, Elaine's case is slightly different.

Elaine was beaten 2-1 by Vietnam's Le Thi Thu Nguyet in the first round of the competition. Even Azalina was concerned.

"The Sea Games is the benchmark for athletes in the AsiaComm 2006 project, and we will review their performances in these Games," said Azalina.

"After this, the programmes will also be reviewed, and if they (AsiaComm management team) feel that the athletes are unable to perform, they will be dropped from the squad."

In taekwondo, Elaine and Chee Chew Chan are the two athletes in the AsiaComm programme and were expected to deliver medals at next year's Melbourne Commonwealth Games or Doha Asian Games.

In fact, team officials, with the support of the National Sports Council (NSC) and Olympic Council of Malaysia, had gone to the extent of "forcing" Noornadia Norrizan, who was the sole Malaysian to win a gold — in the bantamweight category — in the Asean Championships last year, to compete in a lighter weight category to accommodate Elaine.

However, on a happier note, Mohamed Afifuddin Omar Sidek bagged a bronze in the men's bantamweight, going down 4-2 to Philippines' Tshomlee Go in the semi-finals.

Source from http://www.nst.com.my

MANILA SEA GAMES: Elaine falls in first round

Nov 29:

OLYMPIAN and 2004 Sportswoman of The Year Elaine Teo could be the first casualty of the AsiaComm 2006 Special Project squad after she was ditched in the first round of taekwondo's women's bantamweight category at the Cuneta Astrodome in Manila yesterday.

The Sea Games is the benchmark to gauge the progress of the AsiaComm elite athletes, comprising 138 of the country's top athletes, and Elaine's failure to even land a medal may cause her a place in the squad.

While officials from the National Sports Council, and even Sports Minister Datuk Azalina Othman Said, have repeatedly said that performance, more than medals, is what counts in Manila, Elaine's case is slightly different.

Elaine was beaten 2-1 by Vietnam's Le Thi Thu Nguyet in the first round of the competition. Even Azalina was concerned.

"The Sea Games is the benchmark for athletes in the AsiaComm 2006 project, and we will review their performances in these Games," said Azalina.

"After this, the programmes will also be reviewed, and if they (AsiaComm management team) feel that the athletes are unable to perform, they will be dropped from the squad."

In taekwondo, Elaine and Chee Chew Chan are the two athletes in the AsiaComm programme and were expected to deliver medals at next year's Melbourne Commonwealth Games or Doha Asian Games.

In fact, team officials, with the support of the National Sports Council (NSC) and Olympic Council of Malaysia, had gone to the extent of "forcing" Noornadia Norrizan, who was the sole Malaysian to win a gold — in the bantamweight category — in the Asean Championships last year, to compete in a lighter weight category to accommodate Elaine.

However, on a happier note, Mohamed Afifuddin Omar Sidek bagged a bronze in the men's bantamweight, going down 4-2 to Philippines' Tshomlee Go in the semi-finals.

Source from http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: SEA GAMES/Taekwondo: Get two gold or you’re failures

S. Selvam
Nov 23

FROM a sport that delivered 10 gold medals in the 1989 Kuala Lumpur Sea Games, taekwondo has been reduced to relying on winning gold medals by avoiding exponents from other countries.

Which is why, anything less than two gold medals, given the support and special arrangements that have been made, will be considered a failure for the national taekwondo team in the Sea Games.

Both gold medals are expected to come from the two elite members of the Gemilang 2006 Special Project squad, Elaine Teo and Chee Chew Chan in the women's bantamweight and middleweight categories respectively.

In fact, team officials, with the support of the National Sports Council (NSC) and Olympic Council of Malaysia, have gone to the extent of "forcing" Noornadia Norrizan, who was the sole Malaysian to win a gold — in the bantamweight category — in the Asean Championships last year, to compete in a lighter weight category to accommodate Elaine.

Elaine was initially expected to compete in the flyweight category but will now compete in the heavier category as the team officials believe she can guarantee a gold medal in the bantamweight category.

Which means Noornadia will now compete in the flyweight category.

Malaysia's sole gold medal came two years ago via Lim Yit Min after Elaine could not even take to the ring (and had to settle for a bronze medal) as she was injured.

Which is why the pressure is now on coach R. Dhanaraj and Moi Chee Keong to better the 2003 haul.

Elaine and Chew Chan are part of the 138-strong elite athletes under the Gemilang 2006 Special Project squad which is for athletes who are potential medallists at next year's Commonwealth Games in Melbourne or the Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.

Taekwondo is among a few select sports that is actually world class when it comes to the Sea Games, and Manila will provide a perfect platform for the national exponents, especially Elaine and Chew Chan, to gauge their standard and progress in the region.

Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand have world class exponents and if Malaysia harbour any hopes of winning medals in Doha next year, they have to win in Manila.

Which is why team officials were so afraid of Elaine meeting Thailand's Athens Olympic Games bronze medallist Yaowapa Boorapolchai, that the former was allowed to move up to a heavier category at the expense of Noornadia.

But in doing this, another problem has cropped up in the form of Noornadia needing to shed four kilogrammes of her body weight to enable her to compete in the flyweight category.

The flyweight is for those in the 47kg-51kg bracket while the bantamweight is for those in the 51kg-55kg.

Team manager K. M. Rajendran expressed confidence that Noornadia will be able to lose her weight, but whether the team can deliver two gold medals remains to be seen.

Source from http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: OCM and WTF constitutions not helping 'peace efforts'

S. Selvam
Oct 31

THE constitutions of the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) and the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) are on a collision course, and this could lead to a delay in getting the newly endorsed national body affiliated to the OCM and WTF.

This is because the OCM's constitution states that for a sports body to be recognised as the governing body for a particular sport, that body must first be recognised by the international federation concerned, and in this case, it is the WTF.

The WTF's rules and regulations, however, state that for a governing body to be accepted as a member of the WTF, it has to be first accepted by the national Olympic committee concerned, and in this case, it is the OCM.

And it is a predicament that was acknowledged by OCM deputy president Datuk Dr M. Jegathesan and vice-president W.Y. Chin.

"Our (OCM) constitution states that a sports body must first be affiliated to the international body before we recognise it as a governing body for a particular sport," said Jegathesan when asked to comment about the Sports Commissioner's approval of the Malaysian Taekwondo Federation (MTF) as a national body for taekwondo in the country.

"However, we are also aware that the WTF constitution states that the national body must first be accepted as a member of the NOC (National Olympic Committee, which is OCM).

"As such, we need to discuss this further (to recognise the MTF as the national body for taekwondo in Malaysia)."

The MTF is seeking to replace the de-registered Malaysian Taekwondo Association (MTA) as the new governing body for the sport in the country.

Sports Commissioner Tan Sri Elyas Omar approved MTF's application on Oct 14 after holding a public hearing that gave all interested parties, from State associations, clubs to parents, an opportunity to present their views.

The MTF is seeking to be the governing body for taekwondo in the country using the WTF-system.

Only the WTF-system taekwondo is recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Chin also gave a similar clarification and said it was now up to the parties concerned to find an amicable solution.

"Hopefully, a solution can be found to bring to an end this long-drawn dispute," said Chin.

Source from http://www.nst.com.my

MALAYSIA: New body for taekwondo

By S. Selvam
Oct 29


A NEW governing body for taekwondo, the Malaysian Taekwondo Federation (MTF), has been approved by Sports Commissioner Tan Sri Elyas Omar.

And since the MTF is seeking to replace the de-registered Malaysian Taekwondo Association (MTA) as the governing body for taekwondo practising the WTF-system (World Taekwondo Federation) in Malaysia, the MTF has to seek the necessary approvals from the relevant parties.

The MTA, recognised by the WTF as the governing body for taekwondo in Malaysia, was de-registered on May 6.

The MTA, however, filed a civil case with the High Court regarding the revocation of its registration, which is now subject to an appeal at the Court of Appeal.

But as far as Elyas is concerned, the MTF has met all the necessary conditions and requirements as required under the 1997 Sports Development Act (Act 576), hence the approval.

"In accordance to Section 17 of the 1997 Sports Development Act, the Sports Commissioner has the authority to accept or reject the application for registration, and in making a decision on this matter," said Elyas in a 32-page statement yesterday.

"There were those who supported the registration of the MTF, and also those who objected to the registration.

"Overall, I have three choices with respect to the issue of the MTF application - postpone my decision, reject the application or accept the registration.

"However, I believe it is not reasonable to delay consideration of the application because under the Sports Act, the MTA no longer exists.

"This is because when MTA's registration was revoked, the association did not exercise its rights as provided by the Act to appeal to the Minister (Sports Minister) to review the decision made by the Sports Commissioner.

"Having failed to do so, the MTA has allowed the Sports Act to be applicable in full in so far as its existence is concerned, whether as a governing body or otherwise.

"In the meantime, the MTF application has met all the conditions and requirements as laid down by the Sports Act (under Act 576), and as such, the application to register the MTF as the governing body for taekwondo at the national level has been approved."

The application was approved on Oct 14.

Source from http://www.nst.com.my