BJSS ATHLETICS

Monday April 8, 2013

 

Navinraj and Norsheena all set for Asian GP

By AFTAR SINGH

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Two junior athletes – high jumper S. Navinraj and 100m hurdler Raja Norsheena Raja Azhar – are among four athletes selected to compete in the three legs of the Asian Grand Prix.

The other two athletes who will feature in the Asian GP are high jumper Lee Hup Wei and 110m hurdler Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian.

The first GP leg will be held in Bangkok on May 5. The second and third legs will be held in Chonburi and Colombo in Sri Lanka on May 8 and 12 respectively.

The 20-year-old Navinraj and Norsheena, 19, will be making their debut in the Asian GP while Hup Wei and Rayzam have won medals in the previous competitions.

The Selangor-born Hup Wei, who featured in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, won the gold in one leg of the 2010 Asian GP while Sabahan Rayzam won a bronze medal last year.

Malaysia Athletic Federation (MAF) deputy general manager Anthony Samy said that they submitted seven names to the Asian Athletics Association (AAA) but four were selected for the competitions based on performances last year.

The three who were not considered are 110m hurdler Mohd Robani Hassan and 400m runners S. Kannathasan and Schzuan Ahem Rosley.

Navinraj from Johor was delighted to be selected for the Asian GP as only the best from Asia gets to compete in the GP.

“I am honour to represent Malaysia in the Asian GP and hope to do well in the three meets,” said the lanky Navinraj.

He won the gold medal in the Asean University Games in Laos with the height of 2.15m last December and his efforts surpassed the Myanmar SEA Games qualifying mark of 2.12m.

The qualifying mark is the silver medal time or mark of the previous SEA Games.

Navinraj, who is doing his pre-university studies in Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS), said that he hopes to improve his personal best of 2.19m in Sukma (Malaysia Games) in Kuantan last year.

“I will competing against the best in Asia and hopefully with stiff competition expected, I will be able to leap to a new personal best,” said Navinraj.

http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2013/4/8/sports/12941309&sec=sports