By Muhammad Zulkarnain Mohd Azman
KUALA LUMPUR, April 28 (Bernama) -- The name Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang is not just synonymous with the country's track cycling sport, but has long been a symbol of the endurance, courage and extraordinary determination of a Malaysian athlete.
He is always the reliable racer the people could cheer for every time the Jalur Gemilang is raised at an international stage in a keirin or sprint event,
As usual, he rarely returns empty-handed when participating in any race, especially when he is in his best form.
In fact, last Saturday, the rider who is nicknamed 'The Pocket Rocketman' thrilled the national supporters who were present at the National Velodrome in Nilai, Negeri Sembilan when he successfully won gold in the men's keirin event in the third series of the 2026 Track Cycling World Cup Championship.
At the age of 38, the Dungun-born cyclist from Terengganu proved he was still capable when he managed to beat the much younger world champion, Harrie Lavreysen from the Netherlands, to win the event.
This is Azizulhasni's second victory in the keirin event at the 2026 Track Cycling World Cup after doing so at Series One in Perth, Australia in March.
However, behind the string of successes, the question arises as to how long Malaysia will continue to pin its hopes on him to win a medal.
True, his success in beating younger riders and remaining competitive is indeed impressive, but that fact also indirectly reveals that the country's track cycling ecosystem is still too dependent on one big name.
Former national track cyclist Josiah Ng admitted that Malaysia needs to improve its training and support system to produce more athletes like Azizulhasni, who will thus be able to shoulder the responsibility of making the country's name famous on the world stage.
He said that currently the existing training and support system is good but has yet to produce riders of the same calibre.
“Right now, our systems are ‘okay’. But (with) ‘okay’ systems and an ‘okay’ support team, (do) you expect to find another Azizul? Azizul is not just ‘okay’; Azizul is an exceptional performer,” he told Bernama.
Reliance on a single athlete is not something new in the national sports landscape, in fact in badminton for example, Malaysia used to be too dependent on Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei while in squash on Datuk Nicol David.
Therefore, the parties involved cannot continue to be comfortable with the current success without a clear and meticulous transition plan.
Moving forward, existing backup talents such as Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom, Muhammad Fadhil Zonis, Muhammad Ridwan Sahrom, Nurul Izzah Izzati Mohd Asri and Anis Amira Rosidi need to continue to be polished to ensure the continuation of glorious achievements in the sport.
-- BERNAMA
