SO FAR SO GOOD: Malaysia’s Khairul Anuar Mohamad (left) Haziq Kamaruddin (fourth left) and Cheng Chu Sian in action during the men’s recurve team event at Lord Cricket Ground. — Bernama photo
Heavy showers and strong winds smack in the middle of competition saw the Malaysian men’s archery team earn an automatic slot to the quarter-finals elimination round today.
The Malaysian recurve team comprising Cheng Chu Sian, Haziq Kamaruddin and Mohamad Khairul Anuar managed to shoot down 1,981 points to finish 10th among the 12 teams that qualified in the men’s team event at the London Olympics archery events held at the Lord’s Cricket Ground yesterday.
In yesterday’s Ranking round competition to decide the draw for the recurve competition, Cheng shot 658 points, Haziq (654) and Khairul Anuar (669) and will face the Mexican team who finished in 7th spot, when the elimination round starts today.
Cheng said they had a good start but heavy rain and strong winds in the middle of the competition hampered their best performance.
“Against Mexico tomorrow, we have a 50/50. I’ve faced them before but I think we can get through their team tomorrow,” he said.
Meanwhile, the South Korean comprising Im Dong Hyun, Kim Bubmin and Oh Jin Hyek, the hot favourites for the gold, wrote a new chapter in the world record books by shooting down 2,087 points to set the London Olympics alight even before the opening ceremony.
The trio renewed their own world record of 2,069 points set during the World Championships in May, held in Antalya, Turkey.
The four teams that automatically earned a slot for the quarter-finals of the men’s recurve team were South Korea (2,087), France (2,021), China (2,019) and United States (2,019).
China and USA earlier were tied on 2,019 but in the final shootout, the Chinese led by one point. — Bernama