Young sprinter Arsyad Md Saad takes 100m victory at Malaysian Grand Prix 2021

Young sprinters Arsyad Md Saad and Azreen Nabila Alias emerged fastest man and woman sprinters, respectively at the 2021 Malaysian Grand Prix in Kuala Lumpur today (10 April 2021).

The 19-year-old Arsyad, despite running into a slight breeze, set his personal best of 10.64 to win the century dash ahead of national sprinter Jonathan Nyepa (10.70) and sprint sensation Azeem Fahmi (10.85).

He is coached by Poad Kassim who trained the 100m's SEA Games gold medalists (Khairul Hafiz Jantan and Haiqal Hanafi) in SSTMI (sports school).

Azeem won the heats (10.67, +1.3) over Jonathan (10.70) who stumbled at the start. Arsyad ran 10.76 (+0.4)  to win the second heat.

Jonathan Nyepa (left), Arsyad Saad, and Azeem Fahmi (right)

Azreen Nabila, 20, even though she seemed to have muscle cramp towards the end, completed her race in 12.00s just ahead of experienced sprinters Komalam Shally (12.01) and Siti Fatimah Mohamad (12.12).

Meanwhile, Kirthana Ramasamy won the women's triple jump in 13.21m, ahead of her teammate Nurul Ashikin Abbas who achieved 13.00m, her first 13m jump legally.

Iskandar Alwi won the men's pole vault in 4.85m; he was unable to clear a 5.00m height.

Lee Hup Wei tore his jumping shoe during the high jump competition and decided to "stop competing." It was after he successfully made a bar clearance of 2.05m.Youngster Eizlan Dahalan won the men's high jump in the same height of 2.05m. 

In hammer throws, Grace Wong broke her own national record with a distance of 62.48m, while Jackie Wong threw 66.47m to win the men's event. Read here for more details.

Selected Results:

MEN

100m Final (w?)

1. Muhammad Arsyad Md Saat 10.64

2. Jonathan Nyepa 10.70

3. Muhammad Azeem Mohd Fahmi 10.85

4. Muhammad Zulfiqar Ismail 10.91

5. Kwong Kar Jun 11.00

Heat 1 (+1.3)

1. Muhammad Azeem Mohd Fahmi 10.67

2. Jonathan Nyepa 10.70

3. Kwong Kar Jun 10.92

4. Sahrul Samali 11.07

Heat 2 (+0.4)

1. Muhammad Arsyad Md Saat 10.76

2. Muhammad Zulfiqar Ismail 10.84

800m

1. Wan Muhammad Fazri Wan Zahari 1:55.82

2. Avinasher Austin 1:56.44

3. Anas Ariffin 1:57.03

4. Muhammad Amirul Arif 1:57.17

5. Royson Vincent 1:57.93

6. Berchmans Arruldass 1:59.66

7. Muhammad Thaqif Lufti Azman 2:01.22

8. Jeff Lim Zhe Yu 2:02.13

High Jump

1. Mohamad Eizlan Dahalan 2.05

2. Lee Hup Wei 2.05

3. Norshafiee Mohd Shah 1.96

4. Mohamad Farhan Azman 1.96

Pole Vault

1. Iskandar Alwi 4.85

2. Muhammad Naufal Sharul Afzam 4.45

3. Aiman Suffian Bahrizal 3.55

Hammer Throw

1. Jackie Wong Siew Cheer 66.47

2. Sadat Marzuki Ajisan 59.94

WOMEN

100m Final (w?)

1. Azreen Nabil Alias 12.00

2. Komalam Shally Selveratnam 12.01

3. Siti Fatimah Mohamad 12.12

4. Nurul Faezah Asma Mazlan 12.19

800m

1. Savinder Kaur 2:14.23

2. Padhmaloshini Jayaseelan 2:25.73

Triple Jump

1. Kirthana Ramasamy 13.21

2. Nurul Ashikin Abbas 13.00

3. Nur Fatin Najiha Mohd Aaziz 11.55

Hammer Throw

1. Grace Wong Xiu Mei 62.48 / National Record

2. Nurul Hidayah Lukman 49.98

Second day of the meet will be held tomorrow (11 April).

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Grace Wong breaks her own national record with 62.48m hammer throw at 2021 GP Malaysia Open

Grace Wong Xiu Mei broke her own hammer national record by throwing the iron ball at a distance of 62.48m to win the 2021 Malaysian Grand Prix meeting at National Training Centre, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur today (10 April).

The 21-year-old former SEA Games gold medalist opened her competition with a >60m-throw (60.19m), down to 59.52m in her second throw, and followed by the national record effort. 

She then fouled in her fourth attempt; but the next two rounds was over-60m throw again (61.13m and 60.55m), showing a good consistency of her throws.

Such feats indicate that she still has more to show in the coming periods.

Grace Wong breaks hammer national record with 62.48m

The next local competition for Grace and other national athletes will be in June when the national athletics championships will be held.

Grace's throw at the Malaysian Grand Prix today is also 1 cm less than the Southeast Asian record with the best being 62.49m by Thailand's Mingkamon Koomphon.

Nurul Hidayah Lukman was in second place in 49.98m. Winnie Eng May Xin "ensured the minimum number participants" for a competition and was third with 17.95m.

Meanwhile, Jackie Wong Siew Cheer won the men's hammer throw event with a distance of 66.47m. Jackie's best throw and national records stand at 68.22m.  His training partner Sadat Marzuki Ajisan registered 59.94m in second place. 

Their teammates Farm Loong Deng (19.53m) and Kamal Farhan Abdul Rahman (16.03m) took part and registered their first (and best) throws in the hammer throw competition.

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Nauraj Singh clears 2.20m to break high jump indoor record

Three-time SEA Games gold medalist Nauraj Singh Randhawa smashed his national indoor record during an indoor track meeting at Vienna, Austria (30 Jan 2021).

He cleared a height of 2.20m in his third attempt  to finish in second place behind German Tobias Potye, a world cup bronze medalist who registered 2.26m.

Nauraj, who turned 29 three days earlier improved his two-year old record by 1 cm, which he set in Chemnitz, Germany in 2019. 

Like other athletes, he was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and has not competed since the SOPAC meeting in Sydney in February last year, where he jumped 2.20m, the same height he achieved yesterday.

He holds the current national outdoor record of 2.30m from 2016.  

Progression of Malaysian indoor record.

 • 2.15 ..... Lou Cwee Peng ... Toronto ... 1993
 • 2.15 ..... Lee Hup Wei ... Ostrava ... 2012
 • 2.15 ..... Lee Hup We ... Vienna ... 2012
 • 2.19 ..... Nauraj Singh Randhawa ... Chimnetz ... 2019
 • 2.21 ..... Nauraj Singh Randhawa ... Vienna ... 2021

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Effects of Home Confinement on Training Habits and Injury in Long Distance Runners

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, policies of social distancing became commonplace in different places or countries. 

Athletes who are typically active and 'busy' (training and competition) were suddenly required to stay at home.

The influences of such restrictions in training habits and injury in youth long-distance runners were unknown.

A recent study by Bazett-Jones and colleagues (link below) found that COVID-19 social distancing restrictions significantly impacted youth long-distance runners' training habits, injuries, and care seeking behaviors. 

Specifically, during the confinement period, youth long-distance runners decreased their training activities (as follows), possibly due to extrinsic factors such as motivation.

• Weekly running distance
• Number of weekly runs
• Number of weekly hard runs 

Interestingly, the number of reported injuries decreased significantly for the group during the COVID-19 quarantine, and cited to be due to decreases in training volume and intensity.

Running habits and injury incidence before and during COVID-19 social distancing restrictions.

Number of self-reported injuries before and during COVID-19 restrictions by location and injury type.

From one perspective, reduced injuries (because of home confinement) is good. However, in a case of you got injured during the quarantine period, it would be more challenging for athletes to receive a proper treatment.

Indeed, the study also reported that the runners, actually reduced their visits to health care providers during quarantine by 3.6 times (i.e. 58.5%  from 16.4% before lockdown), most probably due to movement restrictions, etc. 

The outcomes suggest that "strategic plans to maintain access to medical services" during such event (quarantine) is necessary. 

In summary, the authors highlighted that "COVID-19 pandemic resulted in significant decreases in both training and injuries." 

The authors further clafiried that their findings were different compared to previous reports in an adult population. 

Read more: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7739837/ 

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Grace Wong threw 61.62 in hammer, Luqman Hakim leapt 7.85 long jump

Several good results were achieved by the national athletes today (12 December 2020) during the National Sports Council (NSC) carnival or "competition simulation."

The multi-sports event was participated mostly by athletes living and training within the NSC training ground, with additional invitations for selected athletes.

This event was conducted to provide the national athletes of various sports, a means to experience  "real competition situation" after (mostly) not having the chance to compete for a long time because of the COVID-19 pandemic, under a "real competition situation" (i.e. competition simulation).

However, as informed to all athletes and coaches, none of the performances achieved in the "simulation meet" could be considered as official competition performance.

Day 2 competition will be held tomorrow. Selected results are as follows:

MEN

100m 

Race B (-0.1)

1. Jonathan Nyepa 10.60
2. Muhammad Haiqal Hanafi 10.65
3. Muhammad Azeem Mohd Fahmi 10.94

400m

Race A

1. Luqmanul Hakim Khairul Akmal 48.71
2. Abdul Wafiy Roslan 49.32
3. Muhammad Aftar Rosli 50.76
4. Mohd Nasharuddin Mohammad 51.09

Race B

1. Rusleem ZikryPutra 48.83
2. Muhammad Saiful Safwan Saifuddin 49.78
3. Muhammad Zulfiqar Ismil 52.82

Long Jump

1. Luqman Hakim Ramlan 7.85
2. Andre Anura 7.68
3. Mohd Latiff Romly 7.50
4. M Nasir Mustafa 7.43
5. Saifuddin Ishak 6.58

Hammer Throw

1. Jackie Wong Siew Cheer 65.68
2. Sadat Marzuki Ajisan 56.87

WOMEN

100m (+1.0) (i.e. men race A)

1. (4th) Azreen Nabila Alias 12.24

200m (+0.4)

1. Azreen Nabila Alias 26.02
2. Winnie Eng May Xin 26.65
3. Siti Noor AAishah Mohamad 27.35

Long Jump

1. Kirthana Ramasamy 5.92
2. Nurul Ashikin Abas 5.85

Shot Put

1. Norliyana Kamaruddin 10.90
2. Nur Siti Balqis Mokhtaruddin 10.65
3. Winnie Eng May Xin 9.96

Hammer Throw

1. Grace Wong Xiu Mei 62.61 - No National Record
2. Nurul Hidayah Lukman 53.49

DAY 2

MEN

Shot Put

1. Ziyad Zolkefli 16.67
2. Far Loong Deng 16.39
3. Kamal Farhan Raihan 15.10

Discus Throw (mixed with women)

1. Abdul Rahman Lee 47.95

WOMEN

High Jump

1. Ngu Jia Xin 1.71
2. Yap Sean Yee 1.68
3. Norliyana Kamaruddin 1.68

Discus Throw

1. Quenie Ting kung Ni 46.72
2. Connie Choo Kang Ni 46.13

Triple Jump

1. Kirthana Ramasamy 13.06
2. Nurul Ashikin Abas 13.02

Note - none of these performances are eligible for record and ranking purposes.

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Andre Anura leaps 7.93m Long Jump at KOM Under Distance Meet 2020 (Complete Results)

There are some excellent results have been recorded by Malaysian athletes during today's quarantine-based under distance meeting at the national training center at Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur (7 Nov).

This included a massive jump of 7.93m by Andre Anura in the men's long jump, Jackie Wong who thrown the hammer iron ball at 66.88m, and his training partner, Grace Wong who twice "surpassed" her national record of 60.99m with best throw of 62.69 in the women's category.

Next, Paralympic champion Ziyad Zolkefli has thrown a good distance of 17.15m in men's shot put,  but there was a good challenge by youngster Farm Loong Deng in second in 16.84m. SEA Games champion Yap Sean Yee has cleared1.81m in women's high jump, while Queenie Ting threw 47.61m in women's discus, just 30cm away from the national record mark.

Only athletes living within the compound of the training center have been allowed to compete. As a result, the meet was only participated by disabled- and able-bodied national athletes.

Results are as follows:

MEN

60m

1. Abdul Latif Romly 6.5h
2. Nixson Kennedy 6.6h
3. Muhammad Afiq 7.0h
4. Ahmad Solihim 7.1h
5. Benedict Ian Gawok 7.2h

300m 

Race A

1. Luqmanul Hakim Khairul Akmal 33.8h
2. Wan Muhammad Fazri Wan Zahari 34.4h
3. Jonathan Nyepa 34.6h
4. Mohd Haiqal Hanafi 35.5h

Race B

1. Muhammad Aftar Rosi 35.0h
2. Mohd Nasharuddin Mohamad 36.1h
3. Mohamad Faiz 39.8h
4. Wan Fuzi 40.6h
5. Jaklon Ganding 41.5h

1000m

1. Muhammad Haqeem 2:44.7h      *(amended from 2:33.7h)
2. Ruslem Zikry Putra 2:47.0h
3. Muhammad Saiful Safwan Saifuddin 2:47.0h
4. Mohamad Nurdin 2:48.0h
5. Abdul Wafiy Roslan 2:53.9h

Shot Put

1. Ziyad Zolkefli 17.15
2. Farm Loong Deng 16.84
3. Kamal Farham A.Rahman 15.76

Hammer Throw

1. Jackie Wong Siew Cheer 66.88
2. Sadat Marzuqi Ajisan 55.28

Long Jump

1. Andre Anura 7.93
2. Luqman Hakim Mohd Ramlan 7.37
3. Muhmmad Hakimi Ismail 6.91
4. Zulkifli Abdullah 6.75
5. Eddy Bernard 6.21
6. Saifuddin Ishak 6.02

WOMEN

300m

1. Azreen Nabila Alias 41.5h
2. Siti Noor Aishah Mohdmad Ariffin 43.4h
3. Norliyana Kamaruddin 44.1h
4. Siti Nor Zulaikha 44.6h

High Jump

1. Yap Sean Yee 1.81
2. Ngu Jia Xin 1.73

Long Jump

1. Kirthana Ramasamy 6.03
2. Nurul Ashikin Abas 5.70
3. Mahira Hanis Ishak 5.56
4. Winnie Eng 5.18

Discus Throw

1. Queenie Ting Kung Ni 47.61
2. Connie Choo Kang Ni 46.25

Hammer Throw

1. Grace Wong Siew Mei 62.69 (No NR)

This quarantine-based trials was an alternative "competition" for the national athletes after the last meeting they competed before the Movement Control Order (Malaysian lockdown) on 18 March. The easing of restrictions under a Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) started on May 4 for 6 weeks, allowed most businesses to open under strict norms of practice, but not sporting competitions.

The CMCO was implemented again started from the second week of October as the COVID-19 cases rise, causing "actual competitions" cannot be held (at least until the first week of December). 

Several competitions that were scheduled to take place in November, such as Perak open were cancelled.

The national athletics championships is expected to be held in the second week of December, but it is also depend on the future "restrictive measures" by the government.

Note: No national record would be considered in this meet.

Read more...

What are the 4 phases in the 100m?

The 100-meter sprint is a 10-s race (men), making it hard for most observers to understand the event's sequence from start to finish. Coaches employ different racing strategies. Carl Lewis's coach Tom Tellez utilized 5 phases, but Maurice Greene's coach John Smith adopted 7 phases. 

The approaches used not only helps in creating an efficient execution of a sprint race and understanding the event better, but also allows for customized coaching strategies tailored to each athlete’s strengths and needs. Here, we can break down the 100m into four phases, based on biomechanical demands and what can be emphasized during the race.

The initial phase (0-10m)
This phase involves explosive and efficient movement from the blocks. The first 10m is very distinct from the other phases; the highest velocity generated is only at ~5 m/s (the next phase would be almost double). The acceleration tends to be highest at the beginning, as athletes need to overcome inertia for rapid forward movement. Thus, optimal block setting, efficient "clearance" (first steps), as well as smooth legs 'pumping' and arms 'swinging' are crucial. 

Technically, athletes need to keep a low center of gravity and lean forward to maximize horizontal force. The initial steps are short, lengthening as speed increases. Feet strike just behind the center of mass for optimal propulsion.

Early acceleration is critical; any delay can compromise the entire performance. Athletes may aim to quickly establish a leading position, and maintain an optimal strategy strategy. Note that when Usain Bolt broke the 100m world record (9.58s) in 2009, he was already leading by the 10m mark.

The drive phase (10-30m)
During this segment, athletes focus on generating substantial momentum by applying maximal force. This phase is similar to shifting a vehicle’s lower gear to maximize torque (high force production). 

Efficiency is important here to conserve energy for subsequent stages (e.g., avoid excessive "pumping" of the arms); the focus is generating momentum by exerting maximal force (within very short period) on the track. See the concept of rate of force development.

The maximal acceleration phase (30 to 50/60/70m)
This phase is where the speed is increasing from >90 to 100% of top velocity (thus, max acceleration). Sometimes, this phase is called "maximal velocity." Top velocity may be reached at later part of this phase, depending on one's ability. 

The critical transition here involves moving from a forward-leaning posture to an upright sprint, which would facilitate peak velocity (maximum speed) to be attained. For this reason, optimal execution is therefore imperative, as well as for sustaining the momentum generated earlier. 

Many top sprinters use this phase to differentiate themselves (ie, at 30-60m) among rivals of comparable early acceleration. 

The maintenance (50/60/70m to finish)
The final stage is characterized by the maintenance of velocity achieved in prior phases. The objective here is not to accelerate further, but to efficiently sustain velocity. 

The ability to decelerate less than competitors during this phase often results in overtaking opponents towards the finish. 

Here, a proper sprinting form is crucial; otherwise, poor technique can affect coordination, influencing stride length and cadence. This may lead to longer ground contact times, which can slow athletes down and reduce their push-off ability.

Final thought ...
Each phase is integral to the race's overall strategy and requires meticulous execution to optimize performance outcomes. 

For optimizing understanding of performance and coaching, it is important to record data (i.e., during competitions) at key intervals: at 10m to evaluate early acceleration, at 30m to assess the drive phase (10-30m splits), at 60m (30-60m) to assess maximal velocity, and from 60 to 100 meters to analyze the maintenances. This approach helps in refining racing and training strategies, and therefore, improve sprint performance.

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Perak All-Comers 2020 - Full Results

Ipoh, 22-23 Feb 2020 "Perak All-Comers I 2020"
- best and selected results as follows:


MEN

100m (-2.4) (23)
1. Muhammad Azeem Fahmi 10.88
2. Muhammad Arsyad Md Saat 11.04
3. Abdul Latif Romly 11.05
4. Nabil Alwani Rizal Alwani 11.05

Heats
- heat 1 (-0.9)
1. Muhammad Arsyad Md Saat 10.87

- heat 3 (+0.9)
Muhammad Zahid Roskalana 10.93

- heat 4 (+1.0)
 Nabil Alwani Rizal Alwani 10.92

- heat 15 (-0.4)
Muhammad Azeem Fahmi 10.85

- heat 17 (+1.0)
Abdul Latif Romly 10.84, Ahmad Azizi Rozaini 10.92

200m (+1.1) (22)
1. Muhammad Azeem Fahmi 21.04
- 15 year old, born April 2004

400m (22)
1. Muhammad Ilham Suhaimi 47.71
2. Loganes Thilaganathan 48.17

800m (23)
1. Avinesh Austin Murugan 1:56.04
2. Mohamad Amirul Arif Mohd Azri 1:56.41
3. Wan Muhammad Fazri Wan Zahari 1:56.86

1500m (22)
1. Mohamad Amirul Arif Mohd Azri 4:04.11

3000m Sc (23)
1. Ahmad Luth Hamizan 9:55.37

110mh (+1.1) (22)
1. Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian 14.49

High Jump (22)
1. Mohamad Eizlan Dahalan 2.08
2. Norhafiee Mohd Shah 2.05

Long Jump (22)
1. Luqman Hakim Ramlan 7.69
2. Mohd Nazri Mustaffa 7.37

Triple Jump (23)
1. Andre Anura 15.91

Shot Put (22)
1. Farm Loong Deng 15.50
2. Kong Chin Poh 15.10

Discus Throw (23)
1. Abd Rahman Lee 47.39

Hammer Throw (22)
1. Sadat Marzuqi Ajisan 56.21
- he broke meet's record of 53.92 set by Wong Tee Kui in 1992.
2. Evan Allenby Edmund 45.91
3. Rizad Azri Che Radzi 43.48

Javelin Throw (23)
1. Mohd Alif Mohd Razi 55.47
2. Ng Yong Jie 54.70

10000m Walk (23)
1. Teban Raj Chander 49:44.45
2. Muhammad Fakhrul Razi Jailani 49:48.25
3. Irfan Hanania Abdul Shahir 49:50.51
4. Muhammad Aliff Mubarak Ahmad 49:50.96

4x100m (22)
1. TCB Winners Team (?,?,?,?) 41.45



WOMEN

100m (+1.5) (23)
1. Nurul Wardatul Huwaida Hamka 12.29

400m (22)
1. Chelsea Cassiopea Bopulas 56.48

1500m (22)
1. Padhmaloshini Jayaseelan 4:59.98

5000m (22)
1. Puspa Letchumy Jaintheran 18:50.13

3000m Sc (23)
1. Pavitra Das 12:12.66
2. Ramiyah Balasingam 12:29.19

400mh (23)
1. Nur Nasyatul Nadia Md Nasri 63.60

High Jump (23)
1. Yap Sean Yee 1.76
2. Norliyana Kamaruddin 1.73
3. Ngu Jia Xin 1.70

Long Jump (23)
1. Mahira Hanis Ishak 5.56

Triple Jump (22)
1. Nurul Ashikin Abas 12.80
2. Mahira Hanis Ishak 12.38

Shot Put  (23)
1. Nani Sahirah Maryata 12.64

Hammer Throw (23)
1. Nurul Hidayah Lukman 49.91
2. Nur Fazira Jalaluddin 45.32
3. Nur Aqilah Abdul Hakim 42.46

Javelin Throw (23)
1. Nur Ayna Nuha Maton 41.31
 - she broke the meet's record of 41.00 set by Lee Boon Bee in 1996.

5000m walk (22)
1. Nurul Alyahaziqah Kamaruzaman 27:15.16


Perak All-Comers I 2020 - FULL RESULTS

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