XXXIII Olympic Games Paris 2024 – Chef de Mission Meeting With Athletes

Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin, the Chef de Mission of the Malaysian Contingent to the XXXIII Olympic Games Paris 2024, had a productive day by chairing the Secretariat meeting, followed by a series of meet ups with a number of athletes who have qualified for Paris on Monday, 27 May 2024.

After chairing the Secretariat meeting attended by representatives of the OCM, the National Sports Council (NSC), the National Sports Institute (NSI) and the Road to Gold (RTG) committee, Datuk Hamidin took the opportunity to gather feedback and updates from four athletes: Mohamad Aniq Kasdan (weightlifting), Khairulnizam Mohd Afendy OLY (sailing), Johnathan Wong Guanjie OLY (shooting) and Nur Aisyah Mohamad Zubir in Petaling Jaya.

In the brief meet-up with the athletes, Datuk Hamidin was given an update on their preparation towards Paris, followed by lunch. Adding to the occasion, Datuk Hamidin presented sailor Khairulnizam a birthday cake in conjunction with his 31st birthday.

Shortly after, Datuk Hamidin visited three national track cycling athletes, Dato’ Azizulhasni Awang OLY, Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom OLY, and Nurul Izzah Izzati Mohd Asri at the National Velodrome in Nilai.

The track cycling team, who were undergoing speed training in the afternoon, took some time to meet with the CDM to share their performance updates and their plans for central training in Europe before heading to Paris. They are scheduled to undergo their last lap of preparation in Majorca ahead of their departure to Paris.

“Today, we had a really productive day. We began with the Paris Secretariat meeting in the morning to iron out a few issues, especially logistics and accreditation due to the strict access practised for all Olympic Games. All parties concerned will need to be on the same wavelength in order to create an environment conducive for our athletes’ optimal performance,” said Datuk Hamidin. Also present were Mr Jefri Ngadirin, Deputy Director General of NSC (Development) and Datuk Stuart Ramalingam, coordinator of RTG.

Datuk Hamidin also welcomed the appointment of Madam Ang Li Peng as the safeguarding officer of the Malaysian Contingent. A certified IOC safeguarding officer, Li Peng was a gold medallist at the XVII Commonwealth Games in Manchester 2002.

“I also took this opportunity to meet the athletes who are scheduled to undergo centralised training overseas before heading straight to Paris.

“With about 2 months left before Paris 2024, what happens between now and Paris is crucial. I hope all the 18 qualified athletes thus far remain focused and injury-free.

“At this point of time, we were briefed by NSI that sailor Nur Shazrin Mohamad Latif OLY is nursing an injury on her wrist, while track cyclist Shah Firdaus and Lee Zii Jia are undergoing tests and treatment for minor injuries.

“We are expecting a few more athletes to qualify on merit. The final number of athletes will be finalised by early July,” he added.