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Thursday October 8, 2009

High-riding Azizul’s chance to enhance reputation Down Under

By LIM TEIK HUAT

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s Azizul Hasni Awang has another opportunity to enhance his reputation as a world-beating track cyclist when he takes on some of the finest Australian riders in the National Sprint Grand Prix in Adelaide from Oct 17-18.

The 21-year-old Dungun-born Azizul is seen as the young icon of world track cycling after his silver medal performance in the world championships in Poland last March and it is no surprise that the Australian organisers have invited him to grace their national meet for the first time.

Azizul had the distinction of beating world champion Gregory Bauge of France to win the 200m sprint final at the Gran Caracol de Pista track meet in Medellin, Colombia, last weekend. He went on to win the 500m scratch race and finished second in the keirin to earn the best overall male sprinter award as well.

The Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF) deputy president, Datuk Naim Mohamad, said that Azizul started earning the respect of the Australian cycling fraternity after his historic win in the World Cup leg in Sydney last year.

He will be a star attraction at their national meet and Azizul can expect to slug it out with the Australian top sprinters, among them Shane Perkins, Jason Niblett and Scott Sunderland.

“Through coach John Beasley, we also managed to get the other national elite squad riders based in Melbourne to compete in the meet,” said Naim.

“The Australians themselves will be using their national meet to tune up for the World Cup season.”

Besides Azizul, the others in the fray are Josiah Ng, Mohd Hafiz Sufian, Mohd Harrif Salleh, Muhd Syamil Bahrum and Mohd Edrus Yunos and the only Malaysian female rider, Fatehah Mustapa.

Naim added the meet would be good preparation for Azizul in the run-up to his defence of the World Cup overall title.

Azizul will compete in three of the four rounds of the series – in Manchester (Oct 30-Nov 1), Melbourne (Nov 19-21) and Beijing (Jan 22-24). He will skip the third round in Cali, Colombia (Dec 10-12).

Meanwhile, world championship bronze medallist Rizal Tisin will leave today with Junaidi Nasir for the Bangkok leg of the Track Asia Cup this weekend.

But Rizal will not be competing in the 1km time trial in which he became Malaysia’s first medal winner at the world championships. He will race in the sprints and keirin.

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