PUTRAJAYA: National sprinter Muhammad Azeem Mohd Fahmi hopes to get a wildcard ticket to make his debut in the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary from Aug 19-27.
The 19-year-old said that based on the latest men’s 100-metre (m) ranking in World Athletics, he is the highest-ranked national sprinter in 90th position overall with 1,186 points.
“The World Athletics Championships is a major meet, so I hope that competing there (in Budapest) will help solidify my preparation for the 2023 Asian Games (postponed from 2022) in Hangzhou, China (Sept 23-Oct 8).
“If I’m given the chance to compete in the World Athletics Championships, I want to give it my all against other world-class sprinters,” he told reporters after the meet-and-greet session with students of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Presint 8 (1) here today.
Also present were Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh and Umar Osman, the men’s 400m champion in the 2023 SEA Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
The closing date for the submission of names for the world meet in Budapest is July 31.
Muhammad Azeem, the national record holder in the blue riband event with a time of 10.09 seconds (s), also hopes to clock 10.15s and below in Budapest.
The teenager, who is studying at Auburn University in Alabama, the United States (US), said he hopes to fly back to the US on July 31 to undergo intensive preparation ahead of the Budapest world meet.
In another development, Hannah said her ministry would discuss with the Ministry of Education to tighten the standard operating procedure (SOP) in the appointment of coaches.
“What is important is that the coaches must be certified, qualified and if they have had any police reports lodged against them,” she said.
She said this when commenting on the incident involving a dodgeball coach suspected of sexually harassing several students at a primary school recently.
Meanwhile, Hannah is confident that today’s meet-and-greet programme can instil an interest in sports among students, besides encouraging them to closely follow the development of national athletes. -Bernama