PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia will aim to bring home at least seven gold medals at the Indonesia Asian Games from Aug 17-Sept 2.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the Malaysian Cabinet assembled in Putrajaya on Friday (Aug 10) morning to wish the Malaysian contingent good luck in their pursuit of glory at the coming Asiad.
Dr Mahathir later handed the Malaysian flag to karate exponent Syakilla Salny Jefry Krisnan, who will be the flagbearer.
Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman said the official medal target was seven as agreed upon after consulting with the stakeholders, adding that the contingent was capable of getting up to 11 medals.
"We do not want to put undue pressure on the athletes to perform.
"The athletes are also there to perform on the day of competition and suffice to say that they must better the previous achievement from Incheon, South Korea four years ago.
"Cycling, silat, karate, bowling and squash should be among the sports we hope can deliver gold," he said.
At the last Asiad in Incheon, Malaysia bagged 5 gold, 14 silver and 14 bronze for 14th overall.
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