KUALA LUMPUR – Although the national diving team did not secure any medals at this year’s Olympics, it does not signify that Malaysia has lost its influence on the international stage.
National diving coach Aznizal Najib is confident that Malaysia still has talented and capable divers, though they may need to strengthen their mental resilience.
However, this does not mean that the athletes need to endure excessively gruelling training regimes.
Aznizal, who has been guided by former diving supremo Yang Zhuliang, believes that while he can instil rigorous discipline similar to that of his former Chinese mentor, he also adopts a more athlete-friendly approach.
“For me, while we can take lessons from Yang Zhuliang’s teachings, I will adapt them to fit our own culture, as we can’t follow their methods entirely. My approach is to make it positive and keep the athletes happy.
“For me, looking ahead to LA 2028, I’m quite positive because we have talented athletes. However, we need to correct their mindset and truly focus on that future goal,” said Aznizal.
Aznizal, appointed in March, is one of the new faces brought in to revitalise the national diving team and is the first local coach to lead the squad at the Olympics.
However, two of Malaysia’s divers, Bertrand Rhodict Lises and Nur Dhabitah Sabri, failed to secure medals for the country.
Rhodict, competing in the 10m platform, finished 25th in the preliminary round and did not advance to the semi-finals. Meanwhile, Dhabitah, who competed in the women’s 3m springboard, ended up 12th in the final.
Although this is the second consecutive edition where the diving team has failed to secure a medal for the Malaysian contingent at the Olympics, Aznizal believes the team is currently in a phase of reset, focusing on long-term planning for future success. – August 13, 2024