THE uncertainty surrounding the future of national track cycling champion Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang was answered when he announced today that he would continue his career as a professional rider but no longer with the national squad.
The 37-year-old said the decision was made after discussions with the National Sports Council (NSC) and Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh to ensure that all provisions could be focused on other riders.
“I decided to return to being active in the cycling arena competitively, but the journey is a little different and I will not be with the national team.
“I chose to move on my own and professionally. When I sat down with the NSC and the National Sports Institute (ISN), I asked them to fully focus on other riders for the sustainability of our sport,“ he said at a press conference which was also attended by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh at the National Sports Council here today.
Mohd Azizulhasni also known as ‘The Pocket Rocketman’ for his bursting speed on the track said he was ready to ride with the national squad if his services were still needed, especially for the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games in 2026 respectively.
Mohd Azizulhasni said so far he only plans to return to action for the next two years and is still unsure whether he will be competing in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics or otherwise.
He said one of the other reasons he decided to return to action was to ‘heal the wounds’ of failing to bring home the gold medal from the Paris 2024 Olympics last year.
“I want to continue for the next two years, because the end result in Paris was not sweet for me, that’s what bothers me as an athlete, I developed my career well. I was able to go through the trials and tribulations, but the ending was disappointing and not what I wanted.
“Hopefully there is sweetness and we can say goodbye in a good way. I don’t think there’s a specific target for next year, it’s just that this year the target for me is the 2025 World Track Cycling Championships. For next year I have not sat down and planned in detail,“ he said.
Commenting on his training base after this, the Dungun, Terengganu-born athlete said he would undergo more training in Malaysia.
“I get more time to train with the national squad, and I will make the most of these two years of time,“ he said.
For the record, when competing at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Mohd Azizulhasni’s participation in the men’s keirin was disqualified for cycling ahead of the derny (an electric bike used as a pacer), before it left the track and was eliminated in the repechage of the sprint event.
After returning home disappointed, Mohd Azizulhasni who had won a bronze in the 2016 Rio Olympics and silver in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics had hinted about ending his glorious era but was delayed when persuaded to continue representing the country.
He then asked for some space and time before announcing his future after a meeting with Hannah after Ramadan but could not be realized due to several factors.
Meanwhile, Hannah announced a training grant of RM200,000 for Mohd Azizulhasni to support his pursuit of a professional career and added that he has been given a key performance index, that of to qualify for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Japan, next year.
“I feel two hundred thousand is something Malaysia can afford. For some other athletes, I may be worried to give them so much freedom to decide on their own training, but this man (Mohd Azizulhasni) doesn’t have a problem of discipline or lack of motivation.
“When you have somebody who broke his own national record, in Paris, just eight months ago, after going through such a serious surgery, I don’t think it’s time to write him off. So I think that’s why this is a worthy investment on behalf of Malaysians,” she said.
Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF) President Datuk Amarjit Singh in welcoming the grant from the Ministry of Youth and Sports said he had every reason to be optimistic that Mohd Azizulhasni will make an impact in the Asian Games.
