THE 12th edition of the Malaysia Games, which starts in Kuala Terengganu next Thursday, will provide essential data in the National Sports Institute's (NSI) push towards expansion.

This is because the first products of the NSI's six new satellite centres introduced in stages over the past year will be on show.

And this Malaysia Games, said NSI director general Datuk Dr Ramlan Abdul Aziz, will be the platform by which the institute also gauges the scientific values of the country's young athletes against those from developed sporting nations.

In accepting that it is a struggle to integrate sports science and sports medicine as part of the coaching regime right from the grassroots, Ramlan said the expansion plans are on track.

Speaking after the launch of the NSI's bulletin by deputy sports minister Wee Jeck Seng, Ramlan said the first focus emphasised within the satellite centres are nutrition, psychology and conditioning.
"The pilot centre was launched in Sarawak and in September last year, another centre was set up in Penang. The core business at satellite is education and bringing into play a process that will eventually develop into widespread understanding of coaching science," said Ramlan.

Sports science and sports medicine, said Ramlan are not to be separated from coaching, hence the use of the term "coaching science".

A small percentage of the 6,000 athletes to take centre stage in the Malaysia Games this time around, have benefited from the NSI's satellite centres, but with expansion plans and more centres to be set up, this will not be the case.

"The government has to strategise and right now we have a promising group of sports scientists to take on the challenge. With the launch of the bulletin, this gives us the chance to have the studies and findings by our own scientists to be documented," said Ramlan.

"We also need to try and push this understanding and that sports science is relevant, although sometimes it may require a change in culture."