Good for more than one gold

23/07/2002

HIDAYAT Hamidon, winner of one gold and one silver in the 1998 Kuala
Lumpur Commonwealth Games, prematurely ended his career when he
"disappeared" after receiving a payout of RM120,000 from the National
Sports Council for his feat.
It was a controversial decision and many lambasted the naturalised
Malaysian, an Indonesian by birth, and he was virtually in the wilderness
for the past three years where he kept away from weights, and instead, got
married and is now a father of one.
When met at the NSC in Bukit Jalil, Hidayat said he prefers to forget
his hiatus and is ready to lift a few more medals for Malaysia.
"I want to forget the bad experience I had after the `98 Games and keep
a cool head for Manchester where I am good for a few medals in the 69kg
category," said Hidayat.
His teammate, Matin Guntali, lifted three bronze medals in `98 but is
now the national coach, and the other medal hopeful in Manchester is
Amirul Hamizan Ibrahim - a strong favourite for gold in the 56kg category.
But his kampung mate Faizal Baharom, who is in the same category, is
also looking to steal the thunder.
The fact that both hail from Rompin, Pahang, is no coincidence as the
district is known for producing weightlifters.
In the KL Games, Rompin's Abdul Rahman Ahmad was a potential gold
medallist, but he failed and hung his weights for good. But this time, the
Rompin connection looks like a solid bet.
In the rankings released by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) at
the end of last year, Hidayat was second in the 69kg category while Amirul
is the joint No 1 with India's A.K. Pandian, who is the defending champion
in the 56kg category.
Besides Hidayat and Amirul, Malaysia will have Edmund Yeo (105kg),
Faizal Baharom (56kg) and Roswadi Rashid (62kg) in Manchester.
Team co-ordinator Jamaluddin Samir said Malaysia are capable of meeting
the target set based on the CGF rankings and the performance of the
lifters in the recent National Open in Malacca.
"We are looking to Amirul to deliver two gold and one from Hidayat.
Amirul and Hidayat were sent to Indonesia for three months of training.
"This is the first time that we have set such a high target which is
based on the progress of the lifters and with Matin's experience, we have
faith they will deliver in Manchester."
jugjet@nstp.com.my
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