BANGKOK: Another Dungun boy has stepped into the spotlight for Malaysian cycling and this time, it is not Azizulhasni Awang but rising mountain biker Zulfikri Zulkifli.
The 24-year-old delivered a rare breakthrough for Malaysia in mountain biking when he powered to an unexpected silver in the men's cross-country eliminator event in Chonburi on Thursday (Dec 11).
It also marked Malaysia’s first cycling medal at the Thailand SEA Games.
Zulfikri, 24, did not expect to get the silver medal in his first SEA Games appearance.
He is one of the exciting talents to emerge in the Malaysian cycling scene.
He started mountain bike racing but can also adapt to road race discipline. He was selected to make his Petronas Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) debut for Malaysia Pro Cycling in September.
"I started serious preparations only after LTdL, so this medal run comes from the hard work I put in to make it possible.
"I did well in the warm-up and I was hopeful of finishing on the podium. But I also did not want to be too confident given the strength of this field.
"It's when one of the two Thailand riders failed to qualify for the final that I knew I had the opportunity. I'm happy I stayed on focus all the way," said Zulfikri.
Team manager Saiful Abdul Jalil is hoping the result will strengthen the case for mountain bike discipline to be brought into the national programme.
"We have not had won a medal in the men's discipline for a very long time.
"We hope this can open the eyes of the National Sports Council and other bodies to give mountain biking a chance because the potential is clearly there.
"This silver is a team effort despite limited resources. Hopefully, we can achieve more success in the future," he said.
National mountain bike rider Eddyna Zainal Abidin had settled for seventh in the women's downhill event on Wednesday.
RESULTS
Mountain bike
Men
Cross country eliminator: 1. Zulfikri Zulkifli (Mas) 1:35.277, 2. Rendy Varera (Ina) 1:31.690, 3. Mark Louwel (Phi) 1:41.859.
