KUALA LUMPUR: The National Sports Institute will provide support services to national cycling champion Datuk Azizulhasni Awang who is facing a difficult situation after his participation in the men's keirin event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games was cancelled on Saturday (Aug 10).
Head of the Malaysian Contingent to Paris 2024 Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin said that after his appeal regarding the cancellation was rejected, the Malaysian contingent will continue to give unwavering support to The Pocket Rocketman.
"The Chief Commissioner and representatives of the world governing body UCI maintained the decision to cancel Azizulhasni's participation due to overtaking the derny or motorized pacer that determines the pace in front of the group of riders before the pacer exits the race track.
"The Malaysian contingent reluctantly accepts this decision and will give unwavering moral support to him," he said in a post on the National Sports Council's Facebook account.
Azizulhasni, who carried the country's dream of winning the first gold at the Games, was eliminated as early as the first heat of the men's keirin event at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome in Paris on Saturday.
The 36-year-old's entry was disqualified during the first round of qualifying after he was found to have clipped the derny before it left the track, so the race was restarted without Azizulhasni.
The silver medalist was supposed to compete with five other riders namely Matthew Glaetzer from Australia Rayan Helal (France), Kaiya Ota (Japan), Jeffrey Hoogland (Netherlands) and Surinamese rider Jair Tjon En Fa and the heat was won by Glaetzer while the second belonged to Hoogland. - Bernama
