Anugerah Sukan Negara 2010

Olahragawan Kebangsaan - Mohd Azizulhasni Awang


Olahragawati Kebangsaan - Datuk Nicol Ann David


Pasukan Lelaki Kebangsaan - Skuad Hoki Negara


Pasukan Wanita Kebangsaan - Skuad Squasy

Olahragawan Paralimpik Kebangsaan - Zul Amirul Sidi Abdullah (Renang)

Olahragawati Paralimpik Kebangsaan - Nabilah Ahmad Sharif (Badminton)

Jurulatih Lelaki Kebangsaan - Stephen Van Huizen, Tai Ben Hai (Hoki)

Jurulatih Wanita Kebangsaan - Tiada

Anugerah Kepimpinan Sukan - Prof Datuk AR W. Y. Chin (Snuker & Billiard)

Anugerah Tokoh Sukan - Tiada

Anugerah Khas - Datuk Lim Tiong Kiat (Badminton) , Datuk Nashatar Singh Sidhu (Olahraga).

Watchout This Kid

Why He is World No 1

Exhibition Match

Champions League Round of 16

Man. United		20:45		Marseille
Bayern		20:45		Internazionale

Chelsea		20:45		København
Real Madrid		20:45		Lyon

Barcelona		3-1		Arsenal
Shakhtar Donetsk		3-0		Roma

Tottenham		0-0		Milan
Schalke		3-1		Valencia

KLHC V SAPURA FINAL

As expected, KL Hockey Club and Sapura made it through to the final, though in contrasting styles in the second leg of the Malaysian Hockey League semis played at Tun Razak Stadium yesterday evening.
An exciting finals is on the cards as KLHC are out to nail their first overall title as KLHC while Sapura will be out to prove that experience counts and their players are not over the hill as yet.

But one player that will be with divided loyalty is S. Shanker who played for Sapura last year and is now donning KLHC colours.
More of the finals later as we analyse the exit of TNB and YNS.

The exit of Tenaga Nasional Berhad, though it may come as a surprise to many, was to be expected as soon as they lost the services of defender cum penalty corner specialists Mohd Amin Abdul Rahim.
In his place was young upstart, Faisal Saari, who failed to deliver despite TNB being awarde seven penalty corners and a penalty stroke in the match.

What is baffling is why TNB opted not to use one of its set-pieces when they were awarded the penalty corners, especially when they were left chasing the game after Rehan Butt scored in the second half.
And why was the task of taking the penalty stroke not given to an experienced player in the likes of Mahinder Singh, Tajol Rosli MOhammad or even M. Kaliswaran as a cool head was needed at that crucial stage.

It was a poor stroke by any standards and although Davids James Kettle saved the attempt, any keeper would have as the stroke lacked power and was direct.

So in reality TNB have themselves to blame for the exit as they had so many chances to kill off the semis, especially in the first leg where they led 2-0 only to draw 2-2.

The turning point of this semis was the save on the goal line in the first leg when TNB led 2-0 and that third goal would have killed off the game as well as semis.

For YNS, their decision to play open hockey in the opening minutes was the key factor as they were punished as early as the second minute. And it was obvious by having too many cooks in the kitchen, in this case the coaching, was proof that all's not well in YNS.

SOHRABI AND TABRIZ CONQUER JELAJAH MALAYSIA 2011 IN STYLE

NILAI (13 March 2011) – Mehdi Sobrahi and his Tabriz Petrochemical conquered the Jelajah Malaysia 2011 in style when they won the overall individual general classification as well as the taking the best ranked team crown this year.

The Iranian outfit which has been lurking in the background over the last few stages finally flexed their muscle today and attacked the whole day long throughout the 175km ride.

And Mehdi could not have emerged as the more deserving champion than having last year’s winner David McCann of Giant Kenda come in second behind him on the stage with a blistering time of 3:59:44.

“I had always maintained from the start that the Jelajah Malaysia this year is up for grabs for anyone who wants it,” said Sohrabi.

“But my team worked hard today, they really worked for me. After the second sprint (at Sepang), I just went for it. When I looked back at the peloton, the yellow jersey (Vidal Celis of Le Tua Cycling) was very quiet and did not follow.

“There were several of us in front and we worked together including McCann all the way to the finish.”

With Mehdi also confirming his win of the blue jersey for the best ranked Asian rider, the best-ranked Malaysian for the 100PLUS white jersey went to Amir Mustafa Rusli of the Police team.

“I tried to go for the blue jersey but Mehdi was just too strong,” said Amir, who will be joining Drapac for the Tour of Taiwan next.

“He broke away after the second sprint which was really a long way off, some 70km to go to the finish which is rare for anyone to do.”

The two wins that Muhammad Adiq Husainie scored at both Cat. 3 climb in Ampang and Semenyih ensured that he took over the red jersey for king of the mountain from Aisan’s Kenichi Suzuki.

“The target was the red jersey for sure. I had wanted to maintain my top six position from last year but I had several punctures this time round. So I had to refocus on the red jersey instead,” added Adiq.

“The two wins at the two climbs made all the difference and that was my aim this morning.”

The jelajah Malaysia could have been a different story this year with the newly formed Terengganu Cycling team learning some valuable lessons along the way.

They, who had been so strong at the start would have realised that the Jelajah Malaysia is a long stage race and they will need the staying power to last through to the end even though at one time, they had four jerseys in their hands.

“We learned a lot that is for sure,” added Mohd Hariff Salleh, who won the sprinters’ green jersey for the first time in his career.

“I switched from track cycling to road race and I need some adjustments. I am a little tired and perhaps we worked a little too hard at the start this time round.”

STAGE SIX RESULTS1. Mehdi Sohrabi (Tabriz Petrochemical) 3:59:442. David McCann (Giant Kenda) 3:59:463. Ioannis Tamouridis (SP Tableware) 4:01:104. David Kopp (Team Eddy Merckx) 4:01:155. Jesse Anthony (Kelly Benefit) 4:03:10

FINAL INDIVIDUAL GENERAL CLASSIFICATION1. Mehdi Sohrabi (Tabriz Petrochemical) 23:07:312. David McCann (Giant Kenda) 23:08:003. Ioannis Tamouridis (SP Tableware) 23:09:114. David Kopp (Team Eddy Merckx) 23:09:245. Vidal Celis (Le Tua) 23:11:14 0:03:43

FINAL TEAM GENERAL CLASSIFICATION1. TABRIZ PETROCHEMICAL TEAM 69:31:052. GIANT KENDA CYCLING TEAM 69:31:163. TEAM EDDY MERCKX - INDELAND 69:32:424. MARMANDE 47-F2P 69:34:455. SP TABLEWARE PRO TEAM 69:35:12

FINAL ASIAN JERSEY CLASSIFICATION1. Mehdi Sohrabi (Tabriz Petrochemical) 23:07:312. Kazuhiro Mori (Aisan) 23:11:293. Muradjan Halmuratov (Uzbekistan) 23:11:294. Amir Mustafa Rusli (Police) 23:11:325. Toots Oledan (Seven Eleven) 23:11:32

FINAL 100PLUS MALAYSIAN JERSEY CLASSIFICATION1. Amir Mustafa Rusli (Police) 23:11:322. Mohd Shahrul Mat Amin (Terengganu Cycling team) 23:11:353. Yusrizal Usoff (Terengganu Cycling team) 23:13:384. Loh Sea Keong (Kuala Lumpur) 23:13:485. Khairul Naim Azhar (Sabah) 23:16:15

FINAL GREEN JERSEY CLASSIFICATION
1. Mohd Hariff Salleh (Terengganu Cycling team) 66 points2. Ioannis Tamouridis (SP Tableware) 653. Anuar Manan (Terengganu Cycling team) 624. David Kopp (Team Eddy Merckx) 565. Mehdi Sohrabi (Tabriz Petrochemical) 48

FINAL RED JERSEY CLASSIFICATION1. Muhammad Adiq Husainie Othan (Malaysia) 12 points2. Mark John Lexer Galedo (Seven Eleven) 93. Kenichi Suzuki (Aisan) 84. Kazuhiro Miro (Aisan) 65. Jesse Anthony (Kelly Benefit) 6

Crackling Danes give Europe its only title

Once again the match of the day, and possibly of the week, was the men's doubles. The ambience crackled, the rallies were often a blur, and the outcome, in which a nation of a mere five million people won another of imany All-England titles, was a bit of a fairytale.

Denmark has a long history of great deeds in this tournament and Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen added spectacularly to them.

Last year they had four match points in the final but couldn't get over the line. This time they not only achieved atonement, they managed one with a fantastic twist.
Boe and Mogensen were a game and 11-14 down to Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong, the former world number one pair from Malaysia, and then 17-18 down before levelling at a game all.

They were in even bigger trouble in the final game - 11-16 down, apparently being outsmarted by a pair who had won a sensational match the previous day against Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng, China's world champions.

Faced with these deficits, Boe and Mogensen each time made amazing fightbacks - though nothing was quite as remarkable as their final surge.

This brought them six points up to 17-16, two more points from 17-17 to 19-17, and two more from 19-18 to the finish, and during these phases they began to look unstoppable.

Boe was outstanding at the net, and once Mogensen start to get smashes downwards from the back, the nimble left-hander picked off any suspect returns with kill after kill in the forecourt.

The Malaysians had previously had a phase where they tried to initiate flat mid-court rallies and little net exchanges, and sometimes that worked.
But having been in the driving seat for so much of the match they lost their tactical way. And as the match boiled up to its hectic finish, the Danish adrenaline was so high it was impossible to resist.

"Losing like that last year was a big disappointment, and to come back this way – well it's such a fantastic feeling," said Mogensen.

It certainly looked appeared so, for at the end the Danes darted around in circles as though chasing mosquitos and then rolled to the ground where they lay like corpses.

"It's unbelievable. You can't describe the feeling. You should try it for yourself," Mogensen said.

By contrast the women's doubles was an anti-climax, except perhaps for China's Yu Yang who won the title last year with Du Jing and came back to retain it, with a new partner, Wang Xiaoli.

They overwhelmed Mizuki Fujii and Reika Kakiiwa 21-2, 21-9 and look as though they may well go on to prove themselves the best combo in the world.
The Japanese came through in the half in which their compatriots Miyyuki Maeda and Satoko Suetsana had been seeded to reach the final, but started nervously and were never allowed to settle.

But they had achieved something which had not been done by anyone from their nation in more than 30 years, and got a great hand when they received their medal.

No Thai player had reached an All-England final for almost 50 years; Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam found this piece of history hard to live up to in the mixed doubles as well.

They were beaten 21-13, 21-9 by Xu Chen and Ma Jin, which gave China its third title, and the result never looked in doubt.
Saralee once headed the shuttle back over the net in comic frustration at her inability to hit it where she wished, and Sudket, who had been so good in the quarter-final defeat of Tao Jiaming and Tian Qing, the fifth-seeded Chinese pair, could not replicate his best form either.

Sudket also brought the match to a bizarre finish, not attempting to strike Ma Lin's low serve on match point at all, but letting it land in, already walking towards the net to shake hands as he did so.

Ma meanwhile looked well pleased with the steep smashes and threatening presence of the tall Xu. Well she might: her partnership with him could go on to be as good as the one with Zheng Bo with which she won the world title in Paris last August.

Lee gets the better of Lin Dan

Lee Chong Wei successfully defended his All-England Open men's singles title when he beat his greatest rival, Lin Dan, the Olympic champion from China, by 21-17, 21-17 in the final.

The top-seeded Malaysian's triumph came as a surprise to many people, for Lin had beaten Lee in three games the month before last at the world's first million dollar tournament, the Korean Open.
That was the Chinese legend's 15th success in 22 encounters with Lee, and he had seemed back to somewhere near his best after an abdominal injury.

But this time Lin rarely tried the fierce airborne attacks for which he has become famous, and Lee's superb movement and excellent shuttle control in the resulting game of cat-and-mouse proved marginally superior.

"I played safe today – I didn't go for the points at all," Lee said. "But I was mentally strong this time."

He immediately got a call from the prime minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Sri Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak, who told him "good job".

It became evident that Lee might score a famous victory soon after the interval in the first game, when he surged from 11-10 to 17-10 and looked well in control at 18-12.

Some of the rallies were flat and fast, but many of them involve probing clears, lifts and drops, and clever manoeuvring. It was not till the second game that Lin tried to apply much force with his overhead.
However he got back to 17-18 thanks to wonderful accuracy and consistency, and at that moment it seemed that Lee might be wobbling mentally.

But Lin unaccountably tried a clipped drop which fell too short and found the net, and that reduced the psychological pressure on his edgy opponent immensely.

Lee concluded that game with a squall of smashes and hurtled to a lead of 8-2 in the second game. It was then that Lin tried a few of his once-famous aerial bombardments, getting ceilingwards and levering the shuttle down more steeply.

But they were intermittent efforts, and gradually the match slipped back into its cagey patterns once Lin had got back on even terms.

From 17-all Lee made his final push. A disguised return and smash got him the lead again, an overhead drop got him to 19-17, and an amazing block winner from point blank range got him to match point which he converted when Lin was pressured into switching a net shot across court and narrowly wide.
"It didn't work out as well as I thought," said Lin. "I made more errors than usual."

The defeat means Lin failed to achieve a fifth All-England Open title, which would have been a unique achievement in the open era.

The next All-England, five months before the 2012 Olympics, will be his last before his retirement.

All England 2011 QuaterFinals

Europa League Result

HARIFF ROMPS INTO FOUR JERSEYS AT THE END OF STAGE THREE

KUALA ROMPIN (10 March 2011) – On a day when the rain provided relief from the sweltering heat, Mohd Hariff Salleh of the Terengganu Cycling Team, created the biggest news in the Jelajah Malaysia in years when he romped to take four jerseys at the end of Stage Three from Kluang to Kuala Rompin.

With Ioannis Tamourdis of team SP Tableware in romping form to take the stage ahead of another bunch finish, the 158km ride was made a little easier with the pouring rain all along the long and winding route.

Hariff, who has been working in tandem with team-mate and Malaysian sprint King Anuar Manan all throughout the first two stages, was again in the chase at the front to eventually finish the stage on second with Anuar on third.

That was enough for Hariff to win the bonus points and allowed him to take over the tour leader yellow jersey, the sprinters’ green jersey, the best Asian rider blue jersey and also the 100PLUS white jersey for the best ranked Malaysian rider.

“In spite of the rain, I am of course satisfied with how things turned out – winning four jerseys on the day is very good indeed,” said the beaming 23-year-old who completed today’s stage with a time of 3:29:54.

“But my team was a little tired today as we had to do a lot of work to keep Mehdi (Sohrabi, the previous tour leader in the yellow jersey) in control.

“The plan was to take the stage today but under the circumstances, we can’t complain. We hope that we can win a stage before the tour ends this year.”

There were a lot more attacking today by the Malaysian teams at the start although it was not until after halfway through the stage near the town of Mersing that seven riders actually made a real break away.

And the seven included current tour leader Mehdi, last year’s champion David McCann (Giant Kenda) and also Mart Ojavee (Champion System), Luc Heganeurs (Team Eddy Merckx-Indelan), Shinpei Fukuda (Aisan) and Kenichi Suzuki (Aisan).

But the peloton was not about to be caught out and they worked hand in hand driving the train forward to eventually pulled up with the seven after the third sprint at Teluk Gading.

With the bunch taking several turns before crossing the line in what was the biggest reception thus far here in Kuala Rompin, it was Tamourdis who took the stage by inches over Hariff.

“It rained for much of the day but it was better to be wet than to ride under the very hot sun,” said Tamourdis afterwards.

“The race here has been very good for me in preparation for the Track World Championship (In Holland) next week and I’m very happy to take my first stage win this year.”

It was not only Mehdi who lost his shirt on the day where the King of the Mountain’s red jersey also changed hands with Kenichi Suzuki of the Aisan team taking over from Daniel Westmahelmann (Team Eddy Merckx-Indeland).

The first Cat. 4 climb at Kahang made all the difference for Kenichi, who was just a point adrift of Westmahelmann after stage two yesterday.

“If there are tougher climbs, then I’m confident that I can keep the red jersey until the end of the race. But whatever it is, I will still be in the red jersey tomorrow because there’s no climb on Stage Four,” he quipped.

Tomorrow will see the peloton having some recuperation with Stage Four being a shorter 89.5km ride from Kuala Rompin to Pekan.

Champions League Results

Rafael Nadal Defeated Roger Federer in Oregon Exhibition

Rafael Nadal, the world no.1 player has thrashed out Roger Federer in an exhibitions match which was held in Oregon. It was one of the most spectacular occasion in front of 12,220 tennis fans, at the University of Oregon’s new $227 million basketball arena on Tuesday night, 8th February, 2011.

It was another fantastic exhibition match at the Nike’s Clash of the Champions between the world top two players, where Nadal has defeated Federer with 7-5 at University of Oregon’s.

Along with world top two players, Nadal and Federer at the Clash of the Champions were Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka, who also played a Women’s single match.

Victoria Azarenka has beaten the former world no.1, Maria Sharapova in the women’s singles match with 5-4 (5-0) in a tiebreaker. Victoria Azarenka was replaced by Serena Williams, the American no.1, in the Nike’s Clash of the Champions. Williams has withdrawn from the exhibitions match because of injury.

The group of four players played a set of mixed doubles and the big Surprise for the event was John McEnroe.

McEnroe took umpire’s chair for the mixed doubles match and the other two Guest for the event were Joey Harrington and Dennis Dixon, the former Oregon quarterbacks and they took the role of sideline judges.

With the former two world no.1 players, Sharapova and Federer leading 5-3 in the doubles match,  McEnroe and Federer changed their places, as McEnroe united Sharapova on the court and thrilled the crowd with some of his old magic, getting the team to match point before Federer came back to polish off a 6-3 victory with an ace.

Federer has said about Nadal that, we had many big battles over the years and also had some wonderful moments in exhibition play and played in some amazing places and this is obviously very special doing it for Nike in a place that means a lot to Phil. They are very happy to be here tonight.

CELIS STEALS INTO KLUANG; SOHRABI STILL IN YELLOW

KLUANG (9 March 2011) – It was not so much of a gamble than having a little ‘inside information’ but in the end, that extra edge provided Vidal Celis of the Le Tua Cycling Team with the impetus to start sprinting 300metres to the finish for his first win in Stage Two of the Jelajah Malaysia 2011 from Bandar Penawar to Kluang.

The Spaniard said afterwards that after the lead out from his team-mates, he was all ready for a bunch finish but his team manager (Johari Nayan) told him the ride to the finish line will have a downward slope which he could take advantage.

“It was because of what he said that I sprinted away earlier than anyone else in the group,” said the 29-year-old Celis.

“And after the turn at the traffic light, I was already in front with the downhill in front of me so that it did not take a lot to finish the race and take the stage.”

With the stage being long and arduous stretching some 204km, the ride along the east coast presented the peloton with little chance to enjoy the view or take in the sea air.

And with the cloud always threatening to open up, the peloton dotted with several breakaways before settling on one main group to be followed by splinters clocked in an average speed of 41km/hr to complete the route in just under five hours – 4:53:14 to be exact.

Just to prove how tough and punishing it was for the 154 riders who registered this morning, one decided not to start at all while twelve of the starters failed to finish the race and had to be broomed up.

Mehdi Sohrabi, the stage winner yesterday still maintained his hold of the tour leader yellow jersey as well as the blue jersey of the best Asian rider.

“It was not a very good day for me, I’m very tired,” added the Tabriz Petrochemical Team rider. “But we are confident for tomorrow and my team will be better tomorrow.”

With Daniel Westmahelmann of Team Eddy Merckx-Indeland picking up just another point at Ulu Belitong to extend his hold of the King of the Mountain Red jersey for another day, Mohd Hariff Salleh came in third on the stage to ensure that he will start tomorrow’s Stage Three in the best ranked Malaysian rider white jersey.

“It was very tiring especially when in the last 30km I had to struggle with a cramp,” added Hariff of the Terengganu Cycling Team, who is also in the sprinters’ Green jersey.

“After two days, we have not yet gotten a stage win. I hope that we can do it tomorrow.”

Stage Three tomorrow will see the peloton starting from Kluang to Kuala Rompin – a 158.2km ride which should provide just the right headwind to make it a little more challenging for the 141 riders left on this year’s tour.

STAGE TWO RESULTS

Yonex All England Championships 2011

10 March 2011

Enjoy the games....

DARREN PICKS KLHC V TNB FINAL

Darren Smith, the coach of the UniKL-TRC team made his coaching debut this season in the Malaysian Hockey League. Having played the four semifinalists in the league matches, and also having studied their game plan, this website sought his views on just how the semis will unfold and who will make the final next week.

Safee Sali Legend Of Pelita Jaya?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgHRVXtw_Gs&feature=player_embedded

SOHRABI WINS STAGE ONE OF JELAJAH MALAYSIA 2011

BANDAR PENAWAR (9 March 2011) – The winner of the 2007 edition of the Jelajah Malaysia Mehdi Sohrabi of Iran's Tabriz Petrochemical Team (TPT) took victory in the nick of time at the First Stage finish in Bandar Penawar today.

The 30-year old rode solo across the finish line after riding ahead of the main bunch in a breakaway group that started 60 kilometres from the end of the 162.5 kilometre stage, with Estonia's Mart Ojavee of the Champion System team coming second after joining Mehdi in the breakaway.

Terengganu-Pro Asia Cycling Team's Harrif Salleh carried Malaysia's flag in the stage, by not only finishing third, but also taking the lead in the points classification which gave him the Milo green jersey.

Mehdi is the overall leader entering Stage 2 from Bandar Penawar to Kluang tomorrow, a 204.4 kilometre stage which is the second longest of this year's Jelajah Malaysia.

But the Iranian denied that the overall result is a done deal with just a four seconds advantage for him over second placed Ojavee in the general classification.

"There were many breakaways today and I started about 60 kilometres from the finish. I was always at the front and I had the victory on my mind," said Sohrabi.

"I knew when we were nearing the finish in the final kilometres that the peloton was coming very close. But I also saw that there was a chance to go for the win, so in the final 200 metres I just looked ahead and put all my focus on sprinting to the finish line. I won today and have the yellow jersey, but this is not a confirmed overall win. There are many good riders in this race and I expect the lead to change everyday."

Harrif, 23, had an unexpected surprise when he got to the finish as his team's plan was to focus on famous teammate Anuar Manan, who is among the hot favourites in this race.

But Harrif found himself sprinting for third spot with Sohrabi and Ojavee already in front and he took the placing which added to his second placed finish in the first intermediate sprint, to give him the Milo green jersey.

"My team's plan was for Anuar to take the jersey, but somehow it has ended up with me. This is a surprise, but I am thankful. We have to plan the strategy for the rest of the race and I leave it all up to my team manager to decide," said Harrif.

Stage Two of the Jelajah Malaysia from Bandar Penawar to Kluang tomorrow is a 204.4 kilometre stage, the second longest of the race, which is expected to provide more unpredictable results.