The Road to Gold (RTG) committee met members of the press with smiles – despite knowing a tonne of questions would be thrown to them following a series of events in recent weeks.
From a rather “active” Chef de Mission that has got tongues wagging to national No. 1 shuttler Lee Zii Jia wanting out from badminton temporarily, these factors have somewhat overshadowed the programme’s quest of Malaysia winning its elusive gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
A press conference followed the second meeting involving the committee this morning.
Those present to face the media were RTG co-chairs, Olympic Council of Malaysia president Tan Sri Norza Zakaria and Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh; Youth and Sports Ministry secretary-general Dr K. Nagulendran; RTG coordinator Datuk Stuart Ramalingam; National Sports Council (NSC) director-general Datuk Ahmad Shapawi Ismail; National Sports Institute chief executive officer Ahmad Faedzal Md Ramli; and programme member Datuk Lee Chong Wei.
The committee also announced that the men’s hockey team and badminton players Ng Tze Yong (men’s singles) and Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei (mixed doubles) would be part of the programme – dubbed as a “top-up service” to the existing Podium Programme.
Stuart also clarified why he, instead of the NSC, had responded to national cyclist Datuk Azizulhasni Awang’s scathing remaks against the Council, claiming he was left in the dark over his requests for support services ahead of the Summer Games next year.
Here were several questions posed to the RTG committee today.
Will RTG receive money from NSC to run its operations?
“RTG’s budget of RM6.9 million is from the National Sports Council,” said Yeoh.
“That includes the RM3,000 monthly allowances for the athletes under the programme. This RM6.9 million is from NSC, which was made available by the government to help the athletes.
“For now, for this batch of athletes, it is enough. However, as we are still in the qualifying period, there is a possibility more athletes would qualify, and we may need more funds.”
Why did the RTG programme coordinator (Stuart) respond to Azizulhasni’s criticisms against NSC instead of the Council defending itself like it always does?
“The Road To Gold is a top-up service, as we also have the Podium Programme,” said Yeoh.
“Athletes are talking to NSC about their issues, but in Azizulhasni’s case, he raised issues regarding his preparation for the Paris Olympics. Following our meeting today, the committee agreed to approve Azizulhasni’s requests.”
Will Lee Zii Jia remain in the RTG?
“Zii Jia will remain in the programme until we speak to him and his new coach Wong Tat Meng, at the end of the month,” said Stuart.
“Although he is no longer in the top 10 of the world rankings, Zii Jia is still among the top 16 under the qualifying period.
“We decided to retain athletes based on their qualifying points for the Paris Olympics instead of the world ranking. We will speak to Zii Jia and his new coach before deciding the next step.”
What is the definition of a Chef de Mission?
“That you have to ask OCM (Olympic Council of Malaysia),” said Stuart.
“The CDM (Datuk Hamidin Amin) sits in my (RTG) committee, but I do not have a definition of his term of reference. OCM is the one who appointed him. They should be able to give you the definition.”
