A group photo of the national athletes who competed at the 89th Malaysia Open Athletics Championships posing for a photo. The country sent six athletes to the annual competition held in Kuala Lumpur but none managed to finish on the podium at the University of Malaya's Sport Arena. Picture: Courtesy of Abdul Haqim Hj Yahya
Brunei returned empty handed from the 89th Malaysia Open Athletics Championships yesterday.
The Sultanate sent six athletes to the annual competition held in Kuala Lumpur but none managed to finish on the podium at the University of Malaya's Sport Arena.
Maziah Mahusin advanced to the final of the women's 400-metre event after clocking a time of 59.99 seconds to finish third in the heat two.
The 20-year-old finished last in the final of seven competitors with a time of 60.24s.
Sri Lanka's Chandrika Subashini bagged the gold with a new competition record after crossing the line with a time of 52.86s.
Maziah was satisfied with the time but felt that she could have done better.
"I'm satisfied with my time but I know that I can run faster than that," said Maziah in an interview with The Brunei Times yesterday.
"I ran the heats in the morning and the final in the afternoon so I felt a bit tired," she added.
"It was a tough competition since there were all SEA (Southeast Asian) Games athletes," continued the Sultanate's first female Olympian.
On the other hand, Ak Hafiy Tajuddin Pg Rositi didn't make it out of the heats after clocking a time of 50.16s in the men's 400m.
"I'm only sad because of a hamstring problem at the start of the race. But I still ran to my best for the event despite the pain," said Ak Hafiy.
"I'm focused on recovering quickly this week and will continue to work hard at training.
"I don't care what other people say about me and my performance. It doesn't put me down and I will work towards setting a new personal best," he added.
"Only my coach and a friend trusted and helped me.
"I will continue to run and I don't care even when I die," continued the 22-year-old, who personal best remains at 48.67s from the 2012 London Olympics.
Abdul Haqim Hj Yahya tied his personal best in the men's high jump with a height of 2.00m.
He was a little disappointed as he was aiming for the national record of 2.04m held by Demigo Kapal.
"That was bad because it is not the national record.
"I expected higher but it is good enough actually since it was tough competition," said Abdul Haqim.
Meanwhile, Md Izzat Hj Abdul Majid finished last out of five athletes but set a new personal best in the triple jump event with a distance of 14.16m. His previous best was 14.13m.
Nurhidayatullah Johari clocked a time of 12.69s in the 100m and completed the 200m with a time of 26.11s.
Last but not the least, Nuryizyenny Muslim finished in fourth position out of five participatns in the 1500m with a time of 5:19.81.
Next on the calendar for the national athletes will be the 3rd Brunei Darussalam Track and Field Open Championship this weekend.
