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KOTA BHARU – The reopening of the country’s borders come April 1, has brought some relief in the preparations of the national muaythai exponents who are preparing for the SEA Games in Hanoi, Vietnam next May.
Malaysian Muaythai Association (PMM) president Datuk Muhammad Shahnaz Maula Azmi said the association will be sending national athletes to undergo intensive training in Bangkok on April 2 as soon as the border gates open.
“We could see the performance of athletes has slightly dipped compared to before. Following the reopening of the country’s borders, 16 national athletes will be sent to Bangkok to train there.
“They will then leave for Hanoi from Bangkok to participate in the SEA Games,” he told reporters after the closing ceremony of the 2022 National Elite Senior and Junior Muay Thai Championships at Pusat Tarbiyah Islamiyah Kelantan (Putik), Pengkalan Chepa here, yesterday.
Muhammad Shahnaz said apart from the training stint in Bangkok, the national athletes would also participate in the World Muaythai Championship in Abu Dhabi on April 25, in preparation for the SEA Games.
“We are targeting at least one gold medal at the SEA Games,” he said.
On the 2022 National Elite Senior and Junior Muay Thai Championships which were participated by 400 exponents, Muhammad Shahnaz expressed his gratitude to the Kelantan state government for taking the initiative to organise the meets.
“The absence of tournaments (due to the Covid-19 pandemic) has had an impact in terms of the performance of the athletes, but with the help of the Kelantan government which agreed to host the tournaments this year, it was a relief,” he said. – Bernama, March 21, 2022