Sarawak’s Cynthia Li Ying Ci (left, red band) advanced to the silat finals after beating Amira Izwana (in blue) 5-0 in B category Putri Class.
KUCHING: Sarawak’s silat team may walk away with some precious metal hardware as five exponents advanced to Friday’s finals after winning their semifinal fights at Kota Samarahan indoor stadium yesterday.
In semifinal bouts yesterday, in the Putra Class, Mohammad Sharil beat Pahang’s Mastafa Fitri 3-2 in category A, while Muhammad Nur Aizat brushed aside Perak’s Muhammad Amirul Faiz with an easy 5-0 win in category H.
In Putri Class, Cynthia Li Ying Ci defeated Amira Izwana of Johor 5-0 in B category, Vanessa Sylvia outfought Perak’s Nur Ain in C category 3-2 while, Olivia Chong demolished Fatin Aina Syahirah from Selangor 5-0 in F category.
Team manager Datuk Mohd Yusnar Matalie said a total of 13 of Sarawak’s exponents have made it to the finals, seven in the Artistic Silat and five in the Sparring.
He pointed out that the seven state’s athletes who qualified for the finals in Artistic Silat of various disciplines on Tuesday (July 26) were scheduled to compete in the finals yesterday (July 27 at 8pm) in their respective events.
“We are targeting three gold medals for Artistic Silat tonight (yesterday), if we happen to win more that will be a bonus,” he said when contacted yesterday.
In weightlifting held at Dewan Jubli (UiTM), Pahang’s Mohamad Fazrul Azrie Mohdad set a new national record when he lifted 150kg to claim the gold medal in the 85kg snatch.
Cliff Howard Ard Jamadin (Sabah) took silver with 128kg while Muhamad Afifi Haikal Nordin (Kel) settled for bronze with 127kg. — by Daryll Law