Mohamad Faizal Norizan and Ahmad Syukri Abdul Aziz gave Malaysia the second gold in sailing when they won the Men’s International 470 category on Sunday (27 Aug).
This is the first time Malaysia has won a gold in the event.
The Incheon 2014 Asian Games gold medallists finished first in the deciding race to top the table with 14 points, leaving the closest competitors Navee Thamsoontorm and Nut Butmarasri of Thailand trailing behind with 23 points to clinch the silver medal while Emerson Villena and Lester Troy Tayong of the Philippines won bronze with a total of 34 points overall.
“We have sailed together starting in the Optimist and then the (International) 420. The key to our success is trust and believe in each other,” said helmsman Faizal, about his partnership with Syukri. The duo’s next target is to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
In the Men’s International 420 event, Muhamad Uzair Amin Mohd Yusof and Naquib Eiman Shahrin won gold for Malaysia, an excellent finish after topping the leaderboard for the whole week and at the same time being able to defend the gold they won in 2015 Singapore SEA Games.
“It wasn’t easy to defend our gold medal as all the teams competing prepared well coming into this competition but we are very happy to to be able to do it, thanks to the support of our loved ones and all Malaysians,” said Naquib Eiman.
Menwhile, the Malaysian International 470 pair Nuraisyah Jamil and Norashikin Mohd Sayed bagged silver in the Women’s category.
Singapore’s Elisa Yukie Yokoyama and Teo Cheryl confirmed their gold medal after a strong while Narisara Satta and Nichapa Waiwai of Thailand took the bronze.
“It was a really close race, we were boat to boat with Singapore,” said Norashikin about the medal race.
The Women’s International 420 event was won by Thailand’s Sutida Poonpat and Gunyaporn Bueangbon while Lai Xuan Yi Jodie and Evangeline Tan of Singapore won the silver. Malaysia’s rookie pairing of Nur Aishah Kovo Mohd Yusri and Nurul Izzryn Shamsul Ariffin took the bronze to complete the podium line up.
