20/07/2025

theSun on Sunday JULY 20, 2025

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OCM to establish sports endowment fund

SHORTS

MALAYSIA THROUGH TO THE QUARTERS Malaysia has qualifed for the quarterfinals of the 2025 World University Games (WUG) badminton team event after beating France 3-0 in the round-of-16 stage at Westenergie Sporthalle yesterday. Mixed doubles pair Wee Yee Hern Clarissa San beat Lucas Renoir-Flavie Vallet 15-13, 14-16, 15-12, men’s singles player Jacky Kok Jing Hong overcame Enogat Roy 17-15, 13-15, 15-11 and women’s singles player Wong Ling Ching secured her team’s victory with her 15-10, 11-15, 15 13 win over Romane Cloteaux-Foucault. “I’m happy with the win as this was a tough match because I haven’t played for a long time against European players, maybe tha’s why I made many (unforced) mistakes. But I want to reduce my errors after this,” Jacky told reporters after the match. Meanwhile, national taekwondo exponent Ahmad Nor Iman Hakim Rakib failed to advance to the last 16 in the men’s 68kg kyorugi event when he lost to Taiwanese Hao-Yu Hsu 2-0, while national swimmer Andrew Goh Zheng Yen failed to qualify for the semifinal of the men’s 200m breaststroke even though he finished second in Heat Three. HARIMAU MUDA READY FOR INDONESIA Riding high on their emphatic 7-1 win over Brunei on Friday, the national Under-23 (U 23) football squad will waste no time in preparing for a tougher challenge against Indonesia on tomorrow to determine their semifinal hopes in the AFF U-23 Championship. Head coach Nafuzi Zain said the focus was now entirely on building a solid strategy and getting the players mentally and physically ready for the decisive Group A match. “The match against Indonesia is the biggest challenge. But we will not back down. Our focus now is on recovery, and on mental and physical preparations for the next match,” he said after the game at the Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) Stadium, Jakarta, Indonesia. He said a detailed analysis would be conducted to identify Indonesia’s strengths and weaknesses, but acknowledged that playing at the GBK main stadium would present significant challenges and pressure. He said this situation required the players to be highly motivated and fully prepared to face the thunderous cheers of the home crowd and enter the field with full confidence. “We know Indonesian fans are extraordinary and extremely passionate, but our players are also very spirited. This is the time to prove their capability,” he said. Man of the Match Muhammad Haqimi Azim Rosli, who scored twice, vowed to give his best and carry the winning momentum into the next game. “I promise to give 100 per cent to help the team reach the semifinals,” he said.

present this and we will take it to the highest level of KBS through Minister Hannah Yeoh,” he told a press conference after the meeting yesterday. He said the fund would be free from any political interference and governed by an independent body representing the OCM as well as individuals from industry, with potential participation from the government to be discussed further. Mohamad Norza said government representation is important to oversee the fund’s operations, including the consideration of potential tax incentives for contributors. – Bernama

from the private sector including corporation, foundation, and individual philanthropists to provide financial assistance to national sports association (NSA), athletes, and coaches in their pursuit of sporting excellence. “We realise that the time has come for all of us, the days of being completely dependent on the government to help national sports is over. We need support from the private sector to come in. “This effort is complementary to what the government has done so far through the National Sports Council with the Ministry of Youth and Sports. We want to

THE Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) will establish a National Sports Endowment Fund as a sustainable financial mechanism to support the development of sports in the country and reduce reliance on government funding. OCM president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria said the proposal of the establishment of the fund was unanimously approved during the 213th OCM Executive Council Meeting yesterday. Mohamad Norza said the dedicated fund is envisioned to serve as a long-term investment platform, drawing contribution

Commanding performance Sze Fei-Izzuddin, Pearly-Thinaah cruise into Japan Open final after dominant wins

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MALAYSIA’S top men’s pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin storm into the Japan Open final. The defending champions and top seeds turned in a commanding performance to beat Chinese Taipei pair Yang Po-han-Liu Kuang-heng 21 19, 21 yesterday, to set-up a mouthwa tering men’s doubles showdown against South Korean pair Seo Seung Jae-Kim Won-ho today. It is set to be a

today’s result. But on the back of this performance, Goh-Izzuddin will be confident of defending their title in Tokyo. Earlier, national top women’s dou bles pair, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah, advanced to the final in commanding style after defeating Japan’s Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida in the semifinals yesterday. Playing at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, the world No. 3 duo deliv ered a composed and aggressive per formance, taking the first game 21-13 before sealing the match 21-11 in just 35 minutes.

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exciting encoun ter, especially with the fact that Seo-Kim are set to snatch the world ranking top spot from the Malaysians, regardless of

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With this win, Pearly and Thinaah broke their losing streak against the Japanese pair, who had previously beaten them in 13 out of 15 encoun ters. Their last win over Matsuyama-Shida came

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at the 2022 French Open, with the Japanese pair dominating all subsequent meet ings, including at this year’s Sudirman Cup. – Bernama

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Nur Izzuddin (left) and Goh Sze Fei – BERNAMAPIC

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Traditional format will always be cornerstone of football: Giggs FORMER Manchester United star Ryan Giggs believes the traditional 11-a-side format will continue to be the cornerstone of global football, despite the growing popularity of small-sided formats such as 7-a-side. “I think obviously 11-a-side will always be there, and I think there’s room for smaller formats of the game as well. appeal, especially when combined with social media personalities and content creators.

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On the other hand, former Red Devils forward Dimitar Berbatov, said the small sided football has its advantage in developing technical ability, thanks to its tight spaces. “This type of football is always popular in my country (Bulgaria). Even when I was a little boy, “I still play to this day five-a-side, six-a side, seven-a-side, so it’s nothing new to me,” he said. – Bernama

“Quicker games, rolling subs, more goals, more excitement, but it’ll never replace 11-a-side because that’s your bread and butter in every league and every international league in the world,” he told a pre match press conference yesterday. Meanwhile, former Chelsea and England captain John Terry shared similar sentiments, saying the 7-a-side format is exciting and has strong digital

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Speaking at a Liga 7x7 All Stars 2025 tournament event held at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium, Cheras – the Welshman said even though the shorter format offers entertainment and engagement, particularly among younger audiences, but it cannot replace the full version of the game.

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