KUALA LUMPUR: Paris Olympics chef de mission Datuk Hamidin Amin says that the contingent will look to give Azizulhasni Awang “undivided” morale support following his disqualification from the men’s keirin event yesterday.
Hamidin confirmed that Malaysia had filed an appeal following Azizulhasni Awang’s disqualification from the men’s keirin event yesterday but was unable to overturn the decision.
Azizulhasni, drawn sixth behind the derny, was judged to have overtaken the derny before it left the track during his first round heat at the Saint Quentin en Yvelines Velodrome.
His disqualification meant he was not even allowed to compete in the repechage held later yesterday.
“We did file an appeal following the incident, however, the chief commissaire and representative of the UCI maintained their decision to disqualify Datuk Azizulhasni,” said Hamidin in a statement released today.
“The Malaysian contingent, with a heavy heart, accepts the decision and will give undivided morale support to Azizulhasni.
“The National Sports Institute will also provide support services to help Datuk Azizulhasni through this difficult situation.”
Azizulhasni, keirin bronze medallist at Rio 2016 and silver medallist at Tokyo 2020, had been seen as Malaysia’s best hope to win a gold medal in track cycling in Paris.
On a positive note, Azizulhasni’s teammate Shah Firdaus Sahrom kept Malaysian medal hopes alive by winning his first round repechage yesterday to secure his spot in today’s quarterfinals.
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