National sprint quartet beat odds to make final
national 4x100m quartet proved that they are not there just to make up the numbers.
They showed what they are capable of at the ongoing Commonwealth Games by booking their ticket to the final at the Carrara Stadium yesterday, making them the first national sprint quartet to make it to the final of the event at the Games.
The quartet, made up of Nixson Kennedy, Jonathan Nyepa, Badrul Hisham Abdul Manap and the country’s fastest man, Khairul Hafiz Jantan, clocked a time of 39.39s to be among the top eight to qualify for the final.
Their timing however is still short of the national record which the same quartet achieved last year at the Kuala Lumpur Sea Games when they ran 39.27s, and perhaps this could be their target to achieve in the final which will take place today.
National athletics team manager Zainal Abas admitted the odds were stacked against his four, young charges who had to contend with running against some of the best quartets in the world, some of whom are physically stronger and able to record faster times.
“Winning a medal will be a very tall order, because they will be up against some of the best sprinting quartets in the final,” said Zainal.
“However, what we are hoping for is that they are able to rewrite the national record and record a time of under 39 seconds.
“Their success in being the first national quartet to qualify for the event’s final is an achievement in itself which all of us can be proud of.”
Meanwhile, national pole vaulter Chuah Yu Tian fell out of contention early on in the women’s final when she failed to clear 3.85m.