MOHD Shah Firdaus Sahrom makes his UCI Track Cycling World Cup individual debut in the keirin today, aiming for an immediate impact on the world stage in Round Two of the series in London.
The 20-year-old from Muar is taking a no-nonsense approach, setting clear targets of making the keirin final and then to better his 10.4s personal best in the 200m sprint flying lap qualifying tomorrow.
“I feel normal, there’s no jitters and I’m confident about this,” said a composed Mohd Shah as he prepared for today’s task.
“As for my form currently, I can’t say where I’m at until we get into the competition and see where I stand against the rest. But I’m focused on my goals and I’m going for it.”
Mohd Shah will have senior Azizulhasni Awang alongside him through this tough phase and will count on the three-time World Cup keirin overall champion for much needed guidance.
“I’ll be satisfied for now if I beat my personal best in the sprint. It’s 10.4s, so I just want to clock below that and I’m not thinking about where I rank at the moment,” said Mohd Shah.
“But firstly comes the keirin tomorrow (today). My focus will be to race well and try to go as far as I can. Of course, the final is my target.”
While Mohd Shah looks to get his World Cup campaign off on a high note, Azizulhasni will be looking for a much improved outing after a dismal start at the season-opener in Guadalajara, Mexico last month where he was out in the first round of the keirin and only qualified 31st in the sprint.
Fatehah Mustapa is also in action today in the women’s 200m sprint flying lap qualifying, hoping to make it through to the knockout stages to continue on her promising start to the season.