Fadhli Ishak
KUALA LUMPUR: Swimming legend Nurul Huda Abdullah has asked Malaysian athletes to do the near impossible at the Sea Games.
That is to beat her Sea Games record of a total of 22 astounding gold.
Nurul, who is deputy chef de mission (CDM) for the Manila Sea Games (Nov 30-Dec 11), issued the challenge when visiting karate, takewondo, table tennis and wushu athletes at Bukit Jalil on Wednesday.
Nurul, now 46, won seven Sea Games gold in 1985 (Bangkok), seven gold in 1987 (Jakarta) and an astounding 8 gold in 1989 (Kuala Lumpur).
Malaysian athletes may flinch at the challenge but Nurul said she doesn’t expect her 22-gold record to last forever as all her national records (in the various swimming events) have been broken.
On her national marks being surpassed, Nurul said: “That is good because it shows we have developed since then.”
“Now, this (22 gold) is the only record I have left. I will be sad to see it go.
“Actually, I am surprised that it has managed to last this long because it has been 30 years since I last competed in the Sea Games in 1989.”
However, Nurul said there are at least some athletes close to beating the 22-gold mark.
She believes that veteran bowler Shalin Zulkifli, who has 20 gold to her name, and veteran diver Leong Mun Yee, who has 17, are those capable of overtaking her.
“At the moment the closest person is Shalin and I have urged her to break my record. She is only two gold away,” added Nurul.