IPOH: Using a bike borrowed from his idol Anuar Manan, Terengganu's Wan Abdul Rahman Hamdan created what was arguably the upset of the tournament in the track cycling event at the Perak Malaysia Games on Friday.
The 19-year-old put in an inspired performance at the open-air Velodrome Rakyat, crossing the line first in four minutes and 44.215 seconds to defeat Johor's Eiman Firdaus Zamri by more than six seconds in the men's individual pursuit (4km) final.
Eiman, who won gold in the discipline at the Kuala Lumpur Sea Games last year, was the hot favourite in the discipline.
Sabah's Waldron Chee (4:55:753s) downed Muhsin Al Redha Misbah of Selangor in the bronze decider.
Wan said he was grateful for the support he had received, including from Anuar, who is one of the greatest road sprinters Malaysia has produced.
"Most people thought I would not be able to beat my opponent (Eiman), even my personal target was only to finish in the top-four," said Wan.
"But I felt incredibly inspired today, maybe because of the tremendous support I have been receiving from my coaches, my parents, who travelled all the way here to watch me race, and also the Terengganu Menteri Besar (Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar).
"I also feel very lucky that my idol Anuar let me borrow his bike today. It meant a lot to me and I managed to take in some of his winning aura."
Wan, who won the criterium gold and road race silver, added that he was mentally prepared to face anyone in the final including Eiman.
The latter has already been competing in major competitions at the international level, including the recent Indonesia Asian Games.
"Bigger races are usually held in an indoor velodrome, so I felt that I had a slight advantage competing outdoors here. I also felt that I had an advantage in terms of stamina," added Wan.
The men's individual sprint final witnessed Selangor's Shariz Efendi Shahrin overcoming Ridwan Sahrom of Johor in the final. Johor’s Khairil Nizam Rasol took the bronze after defeating Selangor’s Alif Aiman Safuan in the decider.