KUALA LUMPUR — Amid concerns raised by the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) regarding the condition of Sri Putra Hall, the Malaysian Stadium Corporation (PSM) has assured that the venue will be ready for the national indoor hockey team’s use by the end of the month.
This comes after a roof leakage incident at Axiata Arena during the ongoing Malaysia Open Super 1000 series, which has raised doubts about the state of the adjacent facility, the Sri Putra Hall.
The roof leak at Axiata Arena on the tournament’s opening day on Tuesday disrupted several matches, including those involving Malaysia’s national women’s doubles pair Go Pei Kee and Teoh Mei Xing, and Canadian player Brian Yang.
Fans were forced to wait for the matches to resume as the roof sprung a leak after a heavy downpour.
Stadium Corp issued an apology, citing that the roof had not been renovated since the 1998 Commonwealth Games and promised to resolve the issue before the event concludes on January 12.
While the issue was resolved at Axiata Arena, the incident has heightened concerns about Sri Putra Hall, built around the same time.
MHC’s national indoor hockey chairman, Shurizan Mansor, expressed worries that a similar issue might occur at the hall, which is slated to become the training base for the national indoor hockey team in preparation for the 2025 Men’s Indoor Hockey World Cup.
“It’s a bit worrying what happened at the Axiata Arena, and our hall is also located nearby.
“The last time we were informed by Stadium Corp, they said they would give us the hall after completing all the necessary upgrades,” Shurizan told Scoop.
He also highlighted that the team was in the process of replacing the mat with FIH-approved courts for indoor hockey and emphasised that the team did not want rainwater to damage the surface.
Speaking to Scoop, however, Stadium Corp CEO Iliyas Jamil assured that there would be no issues with the roof at Sri Putra Hall.
“There are no issues with the roof at Sri Putra Hall, and it is currently in good condition,” Iliyas said.
“We are working on securing a dedicated chiller for the air conditioning system, and the flooring installation, in accordance with FIH standards, will be completed within the given timeframe.”
Iliyas also assured that the hall would be ready for the team’s SEA Games preparation by the end of January.
The national indoor hockey team, previously training at UTC Sentul and Sultan Idris Education University in Ipoh, qualified for the 2025 World Cup in Croatia under head coach Rodzhanizam Mat Radzi.
The team, ranked 22nd globally, earned their spot after finishing as runners-up at the 2024 Men’s Indoor Hockey Asia Cup in Taldykorgan, Kazakhstan.
Drawn into Pool B alongside Kazakhstan, Indonesia, and Oman, Malaysia impressed at the Asia Cup, scoring 30 goals during the tournament. However, they fell to world number two Iran in the final, losing 7-1 on May 25, 2024. — January 9, 2025