Women’s stunning 100m relay win bodes well for SEA Games ambition

Superb run: Zaidatul Husniah Zulkifli played a pivotal role in Malaysia’s 4x100m relay gold medal run.

PETALING JAYA: Women sprinters are flexing their muscles at the right time ahead of the Cambodia SEA Games.

The national 100m relay quartet of Zaidatul Husniah Zulkifli, Nur Aishah Rofina Aling, Azreen Nabila Alias and Nur Afrina Mohd Rizal defied the odds by beating the hosts with a time of 45.70s in the Singapore Open at the Singapore Sports Hub yesterday.

They did better than the Lion City foursome led by Hanoi SEA Games 200m gold medal winner Veronica Pereira who posted 23.52s to break the national record en route to victory.

Veronica, together with Roxanne Enriquez, Elizabeth Tan and Kerstin Ong, took silver with a time of 45.82s.

Thailand, who featured younger faces, came in third with 46.06s through Jirapat Khanonta, Manatsada Sanman, Sukanda Petraksa and Suwimol Srathienthong.

At the last SEA Games, Thailand won the women’s 100m relay gold while Singapore and Malaysia came in second and third respectively.

Zaidatul and Co’s fine run yesterday augurs well for the Cambodia Games and national athletics coach Mohd Zaki Sadri wants them to keep the momentum going.

“I watched the video of their run and will wait for the full analysis from the sprint coaches but I have to laud their fighting spirit. Singapore had the lead up to their third runner, and we came back to win the gold. I salute them,” said Zaki.

“From my observation though, the exchange of the baton can be cleaner, and I hope that it can be fixed in training sessions before they board the flight to Cambodia.

“We still have time to plan our assault and see what is best for the team.”

Meanwhile, the men’s quartet of Abdul Wafiy Roslan, Mohd Arsyad Saat, Jonathan Nyepa and Mohd Haiqal Hanapi were a disappointment as they were disqualified due to a technicality involving the fourth runner, who couldn’t receive the baton cleanly. Australia took the gold with a time of 41.46s and Singapore came in second with 43.68s.

“It’s better for that to happen now than in the SEA Games. The Singapore Open has exposed our shortcomings,” said Zaki.

Triple jumper Andre Anura Anuar also failed to win gold in his pet event but teammate Brandon Ting leapt to the gold with a distance of 15.03m.

Andre took silver with 14.93m, while Singapore’s Gabriel Lee finished third with 14.88m.

Zaki said Andre had a slight ankle niggle during the last two jumps out of five attempts, and that affected his composure and ability to surpass his usual 15m mark.

“The first two were fouls, and in the third, he got 14.93m. He was going all out in the last two, but felt a slight discomfort in his ankle,” said Zaki.

“Nothing serious though, as he trained yesterday at the National Sports Council (NSC) in Bukit Jalil. That shows his determination to bounce back for the games, and I’m happy to see that.’’

The other Malaysians who won gold on the last day of the competition were Wan Fazri Wan Zahari (men’s 800m); Mandy Goh (women’s 400m hurdles); and Abdul Wafiy, Ruslem Zikry Roseli, Mohd Firdaus Zemi, Umar Osman (men’s 400m relay)