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KUALA LUMPUR – National para athletics coach Ahmad Rafee Ariffin is ready to continue the legacy of former head coach R. Jaganathan in raising the athletes’ performance on the international stage.
He said he would give his everything in guiding the para athletics team towards achieving better performances based on the knowledge and experience gained from his time working as assistant to Jaganathan since 2018.
“I will try my best to give the best. It is my intention to help the athletes as I too was an athlete once. So, I understand the role I need to play to help them so that they can reach greater heights,” he said when contacted by Bernama today.
Ahmad Rafee said he was targeting the Fazza International Para Athletics Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) in March as the first testing ground to see the capabilities of the national para athletes.
He said the championships would also provide useful exposure to the athletes in their preparation for the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Para Games scheduled to be held in October 9-15.
However, he said no decision had been made regarding the Malaysian contingent’s participation in the Dubai championships.
Yesterday, the National Sports Council (NSC) confirmed that the contract of Jaganathan as head coach of the national para athletics squad would not be extended so as to enable the younger coaches to take over and further raise the standard of the para athletes, thus paving the way for Ahmad Rafee to fill the vacancy left by Jaganathan. – Bernama, February 5, 2022