Enough is enough.
A disappointed National Sports Council (NSC) have had enough with Podium Programme athletes Nauraj Singh Randhawa (high jumper) and Irfan Shamsuddin (discus thrower) following their dismal showings at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Nauraj was the first athlete to be eliminated from the 13-man high jump final on Wednesday after failing in all three attempts at the height of 2.10m.
It was his third disappointment after average showings at the Hanoi Sea Games in May and the World Championships in the United States last month.
Irfan, meanwhile, finished ninth in the 12-man discus event with a throw of 59.53m on Thursday.
Unlike most athletes in Malaysia, Nauraj and Irfan are based in Germany and the Czech Republic, respectively, supported by the Podium Programme.
NSC director-general Datuk Ahmad Shapawi Ismail slammed both athletes, stating that he was very disappointed with their performances.
"They behave like Olympic-level athletes, but their performance is only Sea Games-level.
"We have given them enough time to prove themselves in competitions. They have let us down," said Shapawi when contacted in Birmingham yesterday.
Shapawi added that these two athletes had chosen to train in Europe.
"They claimed the environment in Malaysia was not suitable for their training. So we agreed to support them financially.
"They have yet to make progress despite training in Europe. When we told them to return to train here, they refused.
"Time has come for us to put our foot down on these two athletes. And we also want the Malaysian Athletics Federation (MAF) to do the same," said Shapawi, adding that the Podium status of both athletes will be discussed after the Games.
However, based on Shapawi's comments, both are likely to be axed from the programme following a series of poor performances.
However, Shapawi indicated that athletes could still return to the programme if they prove themselves in competitions.
Three-time Sea Games champion Nauraj, 30, lives in Leipzig and the Olympian has a personal best of 2.30m.
The 27-year-old Irfan has a personal best of 62.55m but has yet to come close to his PB this year. His effort in Birmingham was more than three meters off his national record.