KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF) president Datuk Amarjit Singh Gill is keen to see national track cycling icon Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang extend his career to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games (LA28).
Amarjit said Azizulhasni’s recent performances at the 2026 Track Cycling World Cup held at the National Velodrome in Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, which concluded yesterday, underlined that the Tokyo 2020 Olympics silver medallist remains competitive and capable of delivering at the highest level.
Azizulhasni nicknamed the “Pocket Rocketman” created a sensation by winning the men’s keirin gold after defeating reigning world champion Harrie Lavreysen of the Netherlands in the final on Saturday before adding a bronze medal in the individual sprint last night.
“What I saw on Saturday just proved the point that he’s not over yet. Maybe he doesn’t want to say it openly or prefers to discuss it with his family first, but my instinct tells me that he still wants to go to LA28.
“I cannot speak for him, but I believe he still has the legs and the power. If that is the case, we should not deprive him of the opportunity, and MNCF should give him full support,” he said when met at the National Velodrome here, last night.
Amarjit acknowledged that Malaysia’s pool of elite track cyclists remains limited with much of the focus still centred on a small group of riders, particularly Azizulhasni and Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom.
“We have to acknowledge that our pool of Olympian riders is still limited. While efforts are ongoing to broaden that base, Azizulhasni remains a key figure, alongside Shah Firdaus (Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom),” he said.
Meanwhile, Azizulhasni said his decision on whether to compete at LA28 has yet to be finalised, stressing that key considerations including funding, support structure and his priority of spending time with his family must be carefully weighed.
“There are still many things I need to put into consideration, including funding. I don’t want to rely solely on the Ministry of Youth and Sports or the National Sports Council and this needs to be discussed with sponsors.
“If I am to go to LA, I need to have strong sponsorship because I must ensure that I have a good support system and a solid team around me. At this stage of my career, recovery is extremely important,” said the 38-year-old athlete.
Azizulhasni secured a silver medal in the men’s keirin at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, having earlier won bronze at the 2016 edition in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The 2017 keirin world champion, will next turn his focus to the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland in July, followed by the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan in September.
