Azizulhasnl Wins Sprint Bronze To Add To World Cup Medal Haul

NILAI, April 26 (Bernama) -- National track cycling ace Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang has added another medal to his collection at the 2026 Track Cycling World Cup after winning bronze in the men’s individual sprint event at the National Velodrome, Nilai here today.

Azizulhasni, who created a sensation by clinching gold in the men’s keirin yesterday, had no trouble defeating Individual Neutral Athlete (AIN) Nikita Kiriltsev in the bronze medal decider.

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic silver medallist had defeated Huang Ruiting of China in the round of 16 before continuing his fine form by eliminating Dominik Topinka of the Czech Republic in the quarter-finals.

However, the 38-year-old athlete lost to Nicholas Paul of Trinidad and Tobago in the semi-finals.

In the three-race contest, Azizulhasni won the first race, but Paul bounced back to dominate the second race before securing victory in the decider to advance to the final.

The gold medal in the sprint event went to world champion Harrie Lavreysen of the Netherlands, who made amends for his disappointment at finishing second in the keirin, while Paul settled for silver.

Meanwhile, another national representative, Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom, was eliminated in the round of 16 after losing to Mattia Predomo of Italy.

For the record, Azizulhasni also clinched bronze in the men’s individual sprint at the World Cup series in Perth, Australia, in March.

Meanwhile, the hopes of national women’s track cyclist Nurul Izzah Izzati Mohd Asri to advance to the final of the keirin event were dashed after she was eliminated in the semi-finals before finishing 11th in the classification race for positions seven to 12.

Another national representative, Nur Alyssa Mohd Farid, was eliminated in the second round.

The three-day championship concludes today.

-- BERNAMA