KUALA LUMPUR: The expertise of local diving coaches continues to be recognised internationally when former technical director of the national diving team, Bryan Nickson Lomas, was lured by an Asian country.
Bryan's resignation as technical director of the national diving team comes a week after former national women's diver Wendy Ng was appointed as the talent development coach for the Singapore national diving team.
According to Bryan, he left the national team on Jan 22 to further develop his coaching career.
"That's right, I have left the national diving team. I got the offer last December. I can't reveal the country first and what I can share is that it is an Asian country. I will update any development later," he said.
Bryan, 34, created a sensation when he became the second youngest athlete in the world to compete at the 2004 Athens Olympics and was also crowned the world junior champion in the same year.
After retiring in 2015, Bryan was a part-time coach for the Selangor state team and then travelled to the Middle East to become an instructor for the Kazma Diving Club in Kuwait before being appointed as the technical director of the national diving team in October 2023.
When asked about the most beautiful moment with the national team, Bryan said it was when he and his team helped young diver Nurqayyum Nazmi Mohamad Nazim end Malaysia's 18-year drought to clinch a podium finish at the 2024 World Junior Championships.
At the championship, Qayyum won a bronze medal in the men's 3m springboard event (16 to 18 years old).
"Even though it is not gold or silver, the bronze medal is indeed meaningful because Malaysia has not won a medal at the world youth championship for a long time," he said.
Meanwhile, Bryan believes that Swimming Malaysia (MS) ate able to find a better replacement than him to lead the national squad which has great potential to be more successful in the future. - Bernama
