Syafiq ready to ‘fly’ into combat for SEA Games gold

PETALING JAYA: Latecomer Syafiq Zuber won a surprise bronze medal in his SEA Games debut two years ago but he will be fighting in a new taekwondo event in order to push for gold in Hanoi next month.

The 22-year-old Syafiq, who rose quickly in the ranks despite only taking up the sport six years ago, will be battling in the welterweight category in kyorugi (combat) instead of his preferred flyweight event and he believes there is a fighting chance to land gold.

Samuel Morrison will be defending his gold in Hanoi but Syafiq is quietly confident of beating the Filipino fighter.

“I’m not worried about the switch as welterweight is where my chances lie. It is during the South Korea stint in Seoul in 2019 that I had regularly sparred with Morrison and got the better of him,” said Syafiq.

“However, based on his strengths and weaknesses, I stand a better chance of winning against Morrison. My coach (Rusfredy Tokan Petrus) also felt that I have a better chance in the welterweight. I’m hoping to prepare well in order to achieve my gold target.”

Malaysia’s regular in the welterweight, Joshua Amirul Abdullah, is out of action due to a knee operation recently and this had opened the door for Syafiq to make the switch.

Joshua lost to Morrison in the 2019 final.

The Malaysian SEA Games kyorugi exponents began their Korean stint last week at the Chungnam Physical Education High School near Seoul and will be based there until May 13 before flying to Hanoi where the competition starts from May 17-19.