KUALA LUMPUR: Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin expressed optimism that Malaysia will achieve its target of 111 golds in the 2017 Sea Games.
He said the morale of the Malaysian contingent is outstanding and with the present momentum, Malaysia is on track to achieve further milestones in the 2017 Sea Games.
“We are on track, and I hope that more Malaysians will show their support to our contingent as we inch closer towards the target,” he told reporters at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium this evening.
He is hopeful that by tomorrow, Malaysia will reach the halfway mark of its target.
Malaysia is leading the Sea Games medal tally with 50 gold, 37 silver and 32 bronze medals.
However, he said the focus should not be solely on the gold medals alone.
He noted that Malaysian athletes have shown their potential in winning silver and bronze medals, especially the younger ones such as sprint sensation Khairul Hafiz Jantan, who is only 19.
At the same time, he said swimmer Welson Sim is ready for the Olympics following his 200m freestyle win today.
Khairy said although it was a challenging contest for Sim, the win will further motivate him to achieve victory at the Asian and world stage.
Khairy also commended Hakimi Ismail who won the triple jump gold.
"He had just recovered from injury, and is very much relieved with the victory,” said Khairy.
Also present at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium this evening were Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.