HANGZHOU, Oct. 8 — The performance of the country’s athletes at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, which concludes tonight, suggests more funding is needed to take the country’s sports industry to another level. are doing.

Datuk Chong Kim Phat, head of the Malaysian delegation, said financial factors play a big role in the sport’s progress, as is the case with major countries such as China, Japan, South Korea and India, which won the overall championship. insisted.

Kim Phat, vice president of the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) and president of the Wushu Federation of Malaysia (WFM), said the issue was raised with Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh ahead of the budget presentation. Stated. 2024.

“Certainly, more subsidies are needed to promote sports in Malaysia,” he said at a press conference reviewing the performance of the country’s national team at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games to be held here today. Told.

Coach Kim Phat was also satisfied with the performance of the national team, which achieved the goal of 27 medals by winning a total of 32 medals: 6 gold, 8 silver, and 18 bronze.

He said Malaysia could have won more medals, including the gold medal, if national track cycling champion Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang had also been part of the delegation.

However, because the total number of 288 athletes is not as high as the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, which had around 400 athletes, the medal-to-medal ratio has improved to one medal for every nine athletes, he said. Stated.

Mohd Azizulhasni, who also won gold in the men’s individual sprint event at the 2018 Games in Palembang, Jakarta, Indonesia, was forced to withdraw after sustaining an injury during practice at the National Velodrome in Nilai.

On the other hand, National Sports Council (NSC) Director of Athlete Geoffrey Ngadirin said that due to the absence of Mohd Azizul and the absence of ten-pin bowling and pencak silat, Malaysia was unable to play before the start of the match. He said he lost 12 medals.

“However, our delegation proved that even without Bowling, Pencak Sirat and Mohd Azizulhasni, we were able to bring home a total of 32 medals, including six golds. This is more than the 2018 Games. It’s also one gold less,” he said.

Malaysia ranked 14th overall, third best among Southeast Asian countries after Thailand, which won 12 gold, 14 silver, and 32 bronze, and Indonesia with 7 wins, 11 losses, and 18 losses.

Defending champion China has maintained its dominance as an Asian Games superpower since the 1982 tournament in New Delhi, India, with 201 wins, 111 losses and 71 losses, followed by Japan with 52 wins, 67 losses and 69 losses. , South Korea took 3rd place with 42 wins, 59 losses, and 89 losses. — Bernama