A home Games will be special for our athletes, says Nicol

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s squash legend Datuk Nicol David believes that national athletes will have a great opportunity to showcase their potential if the 2026 Commonwealth Games host job is taken up by Malaysia.

“It’s time to create a new champion and find new opportunities for our country. Playing overseas or in our country are the same but we will get much more support from Malaysians, that’s why we want to play for our country,” said Nicol, drawing on her previous experience playing in the 1998 Commonwealth Games held in Kuala Lumpur.

“There will always be pressure on our athletes to get a medal, especially competing on home turf but we can use it to our advantage.”

Nicol is aware of the short time to get ready but said the focus should not solely be on the Commonwealth Games but also other competitions.

“As an athlete, that is our job to get ready for our tasks,” she said.

The Malaysian government will discuss on Friday whether to take up the offer to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) have offered Malaysia to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games after the Australian state of Victoria pulled out last year, citing escalating costs.

The CGF have also offered a fund injection of £100mil (RM602mil) to Malaysia. Victoria pulled out due to an increase in hosting costs, from the initial expectation of A$2.6bil (RM8.09bil) to A$7bil (RM21.78 bil).