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KUALA LUMPUR – A total of 65 teams have confirmed their participation in the 11th National Dragon and Lion Dance Championship 2022 which will take place from December 16 to 18 at the Sultan Abdul Halim Stadium in Alor Star, Kedah.
From the number, a total of 400 athletes from 10 states and two federal territories will compete in eight categories, namely luminous lion dance, traditional lion dance, acrobatic pole dance: lion dance on stilts) acrobatic dragon dance, luminous dragon dance, northern lion dance, racing dragon dance and obstacle southern lion.
The 10 states are Johor, Melaka, Selangor, Penang, Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan, Pahang, Sarawak, Sabah and the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
Dragon and Lion Dance Federation of Malaysia chairman Datuk Martin Lim Soon Seng hopes that this tournament can produce more international-level athletes after almost two years of no competition due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“It is important for Malaysia to retain the world champion title because Malaysia is the lion dance competition founder and we have been the world champion for over 15 years.
“The winner of each category at national level will represent the country at the Dragon and Lion Asian Games to be held in Malaysia next year. However, we do not have a date yet but it is likely to be between October and November,” he told reporters after the launch of the tournament at Wisma Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) here today.
Meanwhile, OCM secretary-general Datuk Mohd Nazifuddin Mohd Najib is satisfied that many sports associations have begun to actively hold tournaments to unearth potential national talents who can compete internationally.
“I am happy to be with the dragon dance team today who have become more active after the Covid-19 pandemic. They have started holding many events and this time the winner in Kedah will represent Malaysia in Asia next year.
“I wish all the best to all participating teams in this national-level tournament,” he said.
In other developments, Nazifuddin hopes that OCM can meet Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh, who is appointed as the youth and sports minister, soon to discuss the athletes’ direction for next year. – Bernama, December 4, 2022
