KUALA LUMPUR, April 18 (Bernama) -- New coach Ooi Tze Liang has helped improve national diver Yong Rui Jie’s performance as he clinched a double title at the National Trials Championships in Bukit Jalil today.
Rui Jie said his improved performances over the past two months were largely influenced by the new training approach and techniques introduced by Tze Liang since February.
“I feel I was more consistent today and have improved a lot. With a new coach, we are learning different techniques and combining them with what we learned before,” he said when met after the trials at the National Aquatic Centre here.
The 20-year-old also admitted that his take-off height and consistency were among the key areas of improvement, boosting his confidence to achieve better results.
The victory is also expected to boost Rui Jie’s chances of being selected for the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, with the trials serving as one of the selection platforms for the event.
However, he admitted that he still needs to improve his confidence level and maintain his current momentum if he hopes to realise his dream of making his Asian Games debut.
“I hope to be selected. My focus now is to maintain consistency and keep the momentum going until the Asian Games, if I’m lucky,” he said.
Rui Jie said he will compete in another local competition, the Malaysian Invitational Age Group (MIAG) in Sarawak, which will also serve as an important platform to collect qualification points.
At the trials, the Kuala Lumpur-born athlete won the men’s 1m springboard event with a total of 341.10 points after six dives.
Second place went to Nurqayyum Mohamad Nazim with 300.15 points, while Muhammad Syafiq Puteh took third place with 292.60 points.
Rui Jie also won the 3m synchronised springboard event with partner Nurqayyum, scoring 364.62 points, while second place went to Ikmal Abror Ibrahim-Muhammad Haris Bin Mohd Haikal with 307.86 points.
Meanwhile, technical director Yeoh Ken Nee said the national diving squad’s shortlist for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games is expected to be finalised this May.
He said two key competitions — the national trials and the MIAG — will serve as evaluation platforms to determine the list.
“Both competitions will be used as qualifiers. Athletes must achieve the minimum qualifying score set to be considered for the Asian Games,” he said at the trials.
On preparations, he said a three-week national training camp in China is also being planned to strengthen the athletes’ readiness for the quadrennial Games after the shortlist is finalised.
-- BERNAMA
