Malaysia's Rachel Yeoh Li Wen practices at the Arena Birmingham, ahead of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Wednesday, July 27, 2022. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP)
PETALING JAYA: National artistic gymnast Rachel Yeoh Li Wen may be busy with her own rehabilitation programme but it did not stop her from mentoring her juniors ahead of the NSC Malaysia Games (Sukma) starting this week.
Rachel is on a break from training to recover from a foot surgery, which was performed last month.
She suffered the injury after falling off the balance beam while training for the recent Commonwealth Games.
But Rachel has returned to the training mat to assist her national juniors in their preparation for Sukma which will be held at the National Sports Council (NSC) Gymnasium 3 in Bukit Jalil this Saturday.
Rachel has faith in Geanie Ng Ee Ling (Kuala Lumpur) and Imaan Zubaidi (Penang) that they could win a medal of any colour.
“I watched them perform their routines and pointed out some minor mistakes in the technical part of the skills,” said Rachel.
“These national juniors are representing different states but I wish them well.
“As long as they perform their routines well, their chances of winning a medal are pretty high.”
Meanwhile, Rachel continues to prove that she is a determined athlete.
She started light workouts about a week after the surgery to avoid losing too much muscle during the recovery period.
“So far so good, my recovery is on track,” said Rachel.
The 23-year-old Rachel will not compete in the Sukma as she has passed the age limit set for the athletes who can participate in the tournament.
