PETALING JAYA: National shooter Haritz Iklil Hessly Hafiz was a bag of nerves as he was taking shots in unknown territory.
For the past two weeks, the shooters have been competing in online matches at the back-to-back Jateng Online Shoot Series 3 and Piala Panglima TNI organised by the Indonesia Shooting Association.
Haritz said he was a bit tense as it has been a while since he last competed and what made it worse was the event was held in a ‘strange’ environment.
“Honestly, I was a little nervous and as it was done online it took some adjusting, ” said the 20-year-old.
“Anyway, it was a good experience although it was just an exhibition. We got the chance to gauge our performance with shooters from other nations, especially Indonesia. I’ve learnt that there’s a lot for me to improve on.”
In February, Haritz was in his element when he upstaged veteran shooters Mohd Ezuan Nasir Khan and Mohd Lutfi Othman to bag the 10m air rifle gold at the Selangor Shooting Championships.
And his feat found him a place in the national team and Haritz is savouring every moment since training started in July.
“We have been occupied with so many training programmes. There’s never a dull day and I’ve made good progress, so I’m very happy.”
With the conditional movement control order extended until Monday in the Klang Valley, Haritz is now cooped up at the Casa in the National Sports Council, Bukit Jalil.
“These are just some of the sacrifices we have to make as an athlete. It’s sad to be away from your loved ones but I believe something good will come of it.”
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