GLASGOW GAMES FIVE TALKING POINTS

Pumped up: The weightlifting team are all smiles after returning home with five gold, one silver and one bronze medals. — Bernama

Azizul’s final dream fulfilled

In what was Azizulhasni Awang’s final Commonwealth Games, his mission was simple: win gold in his favourite event, the keirin. He did just that. He produced a tactical masterclass, timing his race to perfection before celebrating with his trademark wheelie at the finish line – a reminder that his brilliance on the track remains intact at 38. The victory also ended Malaysia’s 12-year wait for Commonwealth Games keirin gold. Track cycling may never see another rider quite like him.

Weightlifting excellence

Trademark move: Azizulhasni Awang does the wheelie as he crosses the finish line during the men’s keirin final at the Commonwealth Games.— Reuters/Bernama

Malaysia has always been a reliable source of weightlifting gold medals, but five titles exceeded all expectations. Aniq Kasdan (60kg), Aznil Bidin (65kg) and Erry Hidayat (79kg) were expected to deliver, but gold medals from Hafizuddin Roslin (88kg) and Syahmi Nor Ghazali (94kg) came as genuine surprises. Their success signals that the sport is rebuilding strongly after doping issues stalled its progress in the past.

Aniq, Aznil, Hafizuddin and Syahmi also broke records in their respective events, giving the federation every reason to invest in this talented group ahead of future competitions.

Shock judo gold

A budding environmental biologist with impressive strength, Amir Daniel Abdul Majeed made history by winning Malaysia’s first Commonwealth Games judo gold in the men’s under-81kg category. His achievement was even more remarkable as he defeated a higher-ranked opponent from South Africa in the final. His historic triumph is expected to inspire the next generation of Malaysian judokas.

Azizul celebrates his win. — Reuters/Bernama

Best performance since 2010

Despite sending a smaller contingent and targeting five gold medals, Malaysia returned home with eight – the country’s best Commonwealth Games performance since New Delhi 2010. Expectations were modest, but the athletes rose to the occasion with a series of outstanding performances. The challenge now is to build on this momentum heading into the Asian Games.

Wet, but not deterred

Wet conditions had not stopped Abdul Latif Romly but this time, the T20 (learning disability) long jumper faced greater challenge, no thanks to cold temperatures and strong winds in Glasgow. Still, Latif stayed composed and produced a gold medal-winning leap to claim his first Commonwealth Games title but he could not improve on his world record of 7.67m after only clearing 7.17m.