Several national exponents are unhappy that they are not part of the Malaysian team at the Asian Karate Federation Championship in Kazakhstan that started on Dec 18.
Questions had been raised over the eligibility of those who flew to Almaty, claiming that those donning the national colours had lost in the selection process to “more eligible exponents who had been training at the National Sports Council over the past two years”.
The world’s sporting calendar was severely disrupted following the Covid-19 pandemic. The ongoing Asian meet and the World Karate Championships, which was held in Dubai last month, were the only two major karate events this year.
A total of 15 athletes, two coaches and a team manager are in Kazakhstan. The meet ends on Dec 22.
A Malaysian Karate Federation (Makaf) official, who declined to be named, acknowledged that some exponents were unhappy with the selection process.
“It was a decision made by Makaf’s technical committee. The decision was justified to everyone. The reason is that the association wanted to see more exponents in the various categories,” said the official.
“Management is trying out some athletes and evaluating their performances ahead of the SEA Games and Asian Games next year. There aren’t any other tournaments this year, except for the World, and Asian Championships,” he added.
