SEA Games: Inadequate preparation forces rower Mohd Amirul to target only bronze

KUALA LUMPUR, April 28 (Bernama) -Only the bronze medal will be targeted by national rowing athlete Mohd Amirul Norhadi who will compete in the "lightweight" event at the Hanoi SEA Games, next month.

Mohd Amirul deemed the target to be realistic as he could not undergo adequate training ahead of the biennial Games in Vietnam.

He admitted that his preparation for Hanoi was still not enough because it takes at least three to four months to be in prime condition.

“I was only able to start full training in March but with the onset of the fasting month I struggled again.

"It is not the same when compared to the training done for the 2019 SEA Games in Manila and the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang," he said when met recently.

Despite having to face an uphill task to compete with the main challengers from the hosts, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines, he is determined to go all out to chase a podium position.

Meanwhile, his coach Norhadi Ishari said that the training conducted during the month of Ramadan at the Putrajaya Lake Club was done every day for 12 kilometres (km) as early as 7 am.

"If it is not the fasting month, the rowers will have morning and evening training sessions, but due to Ramadan, training time has been shortened ... in the evening or night, we continue training in the gymnasium," he said.

The Hanoi SEA Games is scheduled to take place from May 12 to 23.

-- BERNAMA