ARCHER Khairul Anuar Mohamad will hunt for a world title tomorrow but he must first overcome an adversary who has an intimidating record.
The Malaysian will take on American World No 3 Brady Ellison in the final of the men’s recurve individual event in World Championships in Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands.
The vastly experienced Ellison will go into the final as the heavy favourite.
Three-time Olympian Ellison has nailed almost every title in the world, including more World Cup honours than anyone else in history.
However, the World Championships title has eluded Ellison, and this will only make the American more determined than ever to outshoot Khairul.
He has also locked up the first US Olympic quota spot for Team USA at Tokyo 2020.
However, Khairul will not lack confidence as he has also drawn blood against Ellison, with the record between the duo in international competitions standing at one win apiece
In reaching the final, the 27-year-old from Terengganu has also qualified for his third Olympics, next year in Tokyo.
It has been tricky for Khairul who had finished a lowly 16th in the qualifiers. He made the final after beating Bangladesh’s Ruman Shana 5-3 in the semi-finals and American Jack Williams 7-3 in the last eight.
“I never thought I’d be in the final because I had a lot of pressure to qualify for an individual Olympic spot,” said Khairul.
“I don’t know what happened today. Although I made it to the final. I’m not sure if I can win but I will try my best.”
Whatever the outcome tomorrow, Khairul is assured of the silver, making it the best result ever by a Malaysian in the World Championships.
Ellison said: “This tournament has been an emotional roller-coaster. I almost lost my first match, not because I wasn’t in it, but just because he shot really good.
“I ended up coming back in a shoot-off and slowly started shooting better and better, shooting 30s in this wind. When I got into the semi-finals, I just kept telling myself: ‘you’re not going to lose this, you’re going to win the World Championships’,” said Ellison after a 7-1 semifinal victory over Italy’s Mauro Nespoli with a perfect 30-point set.
Khairul will aim to follow up on the achievement of compatriot S. Suresh, who won gold at the World Para Archery Championships in the recurve individual event in Hertogenbosch.