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FORMER Malaysian hockey captain Ow Soon Kooi (pics) was yesterday conferred the Darjah Indera Mahkota Pahang (DIMP) which carries the Datuk title in conjunction with the 81st birthday of Sultan Ahmad Shah.
The former cop, who is now a businessman, was conferred the title as his contribution to the sport is vast and he played in two World Cups as well as two Olympics.
He could have been a triple Olympian, as Malaysia qualified for the Moscow Olympics, but the nation boycotted the event.
Soon Kooi’s debut with the national side was at the 1973 Sea Games in Singapore, where Malaysia were beaten to the gold medal by the hosts. That was the only Sea Games hockey gold medal which the country failed to clinch.
He then played in the 1974 Asian Games in Teheran, and then the 1978 Buenos Aires and Mumbai 1982 World Cups as well as the 1976 Olympics in Montreal and 1984 Los Angles Olympics.
However Soon Kooi, now the Penang HA president, went through some hard times before making it good in life.
He failed his Senior Cambridge examinations in 1971, all due to his passion for hockey as he neglected his studies despite being amongst the top 60 students in an open examination.
Soon Kooi then started working as a waiter in a local hotel for 18 months and continued playing hockey and was selected for the 1973 Sea Games squad.
He then joined the Penang Port Commission as a fireman and went back to his books to complete and pass his Senior Cambridge exams.
After which he joined the Royal Malaysian Police as an Inspector and is now the Chairman of Olympic Sports Hotel.
By Ajitpal Singh
ajitpalsingh@nst.com.myMALAYSIA were hammered 4-0 by Azerbaijan in their opening Olympic Qualifying match in Kakamigahara, Japan yesterday.
Azerbaijan, represented by several Korean-born players, led 2-0 at half-time through a Yulia Muradi brace from penalty corners in the 17th and 31st minutes.
Myung Soon Mammadova (45th) and Yuliya Muradi (56th) completed the rout.
Goalkeeper Farah Ayuni Yahya saved a penalty stroke to avoid further embarrassment for Malaysia.
The team managed to penetrate into Azerbaijan’s semi- circle but failed to convert their chances, including from four penalty corners.
“We were attacking quite a bit especially in the first half but luck was not on our side. The score does not reflect how we played,” said coach Nasihin Nubli yesterday.
“My players tried hard to prove something but their goalkeeper (Farida Mammadova) was on form.
“Furthermore, their naturalised players made a huge difference as they were the ones controlling play.”
Malaysia must beat favourites Japan tomorrow to stay in the hunt for a spot at the London Olympics.
“We were beaten 4-2 by Japan in our last meeting at the 2010 Asian Games. I believe we have a chance if we play to strategy on Friday (tomorrow,” Nasihin added.
Results — Japan 7 Austria 0, Belarus 3 Chile 1, Azerbaijan 4 Malaysia 0.
Japan kicked off the 2012 Olympic Qualification Tournament in Kakamigahara in grand style this morning with an opening ceremony to welcome all the participants in the event.
The ceremony was an extravaganza with fireworks, a marching band, dancers and a flyover by five Japanese military planes.
Fans in the stadium were treated to the two flyovers from the jets, which are stationed at Gifu Airforce Base located within a kilometer of the stadium. Following the flyover the Japanese set off fireworks to officially start the ceremony.
Members of the Organizing Committee and Kakamigahara government were on hand to formally welcome all the teams, which marched in a procession while the marching band honored them with a festive song.
At the end of ceremony the teams departed the field and prepared to battle for the last two places at the 2012 London Olympic Games.
The tournament begins today with all six women’s teams in action. Opening the tournament will be Chile vs. Belarus, that game will be followed by host Japan, and tournament favorite taking on lowest-seeded Austria. The day will conclude with Azerbaijan facing Malaysia.
The men’s tournament begins tomorrow with all six teams playing their first round robin games of the tournament. The highlight of tomorrow’s game will be host Japan taking on the Czech Republic.
By Ajitpal Singh
THE national women's hockey team will find it tough to make an impression in their first competition of the year at the Olympic Qualifiers which begins today in Kakamigahara, Japan.
The team may have been training as a unit for a long time but they have not played international matches since last December's Sea Cup victory in Bangkok and the lack of match practice could hamper their progress in the qualifiers.
The Malaysian squad spent a week in Seoul before heading to Kakamigahara last weekend, where they have so far had three practice sessions at the tournament venue.
They will open their campaign against second-ranked Azerbaijan today followed by a match against favourites Japan two days later, Belarus (Sunday), Chile (May 1) and Austria (May 3).
It will be tough against Azerbaijan as the former Russian state have several Korean-born players in their squad.
Malaysia edged Azerbaijan 5-4 in their last meeting at a four-nation tournament in 2008 but the World No 15 have improved tremendously since. Coach Nasihin Nubli said his team were well prepared for the tournament.
"We want to start the tournament on a winning note. Azerbaijan have improved so much but we have worked out some strategies and, hopefully, we can get a good result tomorrow (today)," said Nasihin yesterday.
Japan, who won last year's Champions Challenge I, are expected to face either Azerbaijan or Belarus in the final on May 5 for the Olympic berth.
PIC: S. Selvaraju during his playing days (left).
FORMER international S. Selvaraju will coach Kuala Lumpur in their bid for a fifth consecutive National Under-16 title on April 27-May 4.
Selvaraju, who made his national junior debut in the 2005 Junior World Cup in Rotterdam, has enough quality players in his young side who are capable of winning the title.
Last year, KL whitewashed Malacca 6-0 in the final and did not concede a single goal in eight matches,
"We have some good players in this KL team who have been playing in Division Four of the KL League and have not lost a single match to date," said Selvaraju.
KL, who have been in training for one month, have two national under-16 players in Misniwan Gusni and Nor Shafiq Sumantri, two from Sekolah Sukan Tunku Mahkota Ismail and 13 from Titiwangsa School.
The tournament will be held at two venues -- Sungai Petani and Alor Star.
"The Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHF) will give a grant of RM3,000 to each competing team and we have 12 registered for the tournament," said organising chairman S. Satish Kumar, who is also the Kedah HA deputy president.
"We decided to hold the age-group tournament at two venues so that more fans can watch the action." Selvaraju feels the challenge will come from Perak, Terengganu and Penang.
"In any age-group tournament, it is difficult to predict the strength of opposing teams until the first day's matches are over, but the early indications are that Perak, Terengganu and Penang will be the teams to beat," said Selvaraju.
KL are in Group A with Kelantan, Selangor, Pahang, Johor and Terengganu, while Malacca are in Group B with Perak, Negri Sembilan, Penang, Kedah and Perlis.
Sabah and Sarawak have opted to stay out. By Jugjet Singh
