SHAH ALAM: Selangor diver Haris Mohd Rezal certainly knows how to save his best for last.
On Friday (Aug 21), the 21-year-old signed off from the Malaysia Games (Sukma) in style by upstaging two national divers to win the gold medal in the men's 1m individual springboard event at Akuatik Selangor.
Haris, competing in his fourth Sukma, collected 353.80 points with scores of 61.20, 58.50, 62.40, 61.50, 59.20 and 51.00 points to win his first gold medal after eight years.
Federal Territories divers Nurqayyum Nazmi Mohd Nazim (347.70) and Yong Rui Jie (336.15), who were winners at the Thailand SEA Games last December, had to settle for silver and bronze medals respectively.
The success completed a most productive day for Haris as he had also taken a bronze medal in the men's 3m springboard synchro event with Ikmal Abror Ibrahim earlier.
Haris had on Wednesday (Aug 19) won a silver medal in the 3m springboard individual event.
"I'm happy to beat the national divers in this event," said Haris, who dedicated the win to his long time coach and former national diver Rossharisham Roslan.
"I know I had the ability to dive better than them but I had to work hard to achieve it.
"I'm grateful to my coach Rossharisham, who has been guiding me since I started to learn diving at six.
"He always believed in me and never gave up on me.
"I think he was shouting a lot and giving me instructions and encouraging me to stay calm," said Haris, who made his Sukma debut in Perlis in 2014.
It is the second career gold on the Sukma stage for Haris as he previously partnered his brother Mohd Syahmi Rezal to win the 10m platform synchro event in 2018 in Perak.
Haris hopes that the success would open up opportunities for him to join the national squad in the future.
"I've never been on the national team and I hope that opportunity will come one day.
"Of course I want to compete in the SEA Games, the Commonwealth Games and definitely the Olympics. Who doesn't dream of that?" he said.
RESULTS
Men
3m springboard synchro: 1. Elvis Priestly Clement-Awang Sharzan Nasaruddin (Swk) 333.90, 2. Nurqayyum Nazmi Mohd Nazim-Yong Rui Jie (FT) 331.11, 3. Ikmal Abror Ibrahim-Haris Mohd Rezal (Sel) 307.89.
1m springboard individual: 1. Haris Mohd Rezal (Sel) 353.80, 2. Nurqayyum Nazmi Mohd Nazim (FT) 347.70, 3. Yong Rui Jie (FT) 336.15.
Women
10m platform individual: 1. Nur Eilisha Rania (Swk) 280.30, 2. Lee Yiat Qing (FT) 273.85, 3. Cecelia Olivia (Swk) 228.50.
