Nur Iffah Natasha Sofea Abdullah (R) presenting a lecture on the roles and functions of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports' National Valuation and Selection Committee during the Brunei Darussalam National Olympic Council (BDNOC) Seminar for Young Athletes yesterday. BT/Ak Fauzi Pg Salleh
30 national athletes were briefed on the roles and functions of the National Valuation and Selection Committee at the Brunei Darussalam National Olympic Council (BDNOC) Seminar for Young Athletes yesterday.
His Royal Highness Prince Hj Sufri Bolkiah, the President of the BDNOC launched the BDNOC Seminar for Young Athletes on Monday.
Organised by BDNOC in cooperation with the Department of Youth and Sports, it is held in conjunction with BDNOC's 30th anniversary and carries the theme "Bridging the Gap: Synergy Towards Success". Yesterday's one-hour lecture on the committee - which is under the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports - was conducted by Nur Iffah Natasha Sofea Abdullah at the Lecture Theatre of the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in Berakas.
The aim of the lecture was to educate the athletes on the sports and athlete's selection procedure and as well as to introduce to them the member structure of the National Valuation and Selection Committee. "For the athletes, we want them to realise that there are procedures in selecting sports and athletes at sports events and tournaments so as to promote fair play in the process," said Nur Iffah Natasha Sofea in an interview with The Brunei Times yesterday.
"The athletes also need to know that there are a number of criteria and requirement to be fulfilled in order to qualify and they must pass all of it. "And not just that, their achievement for the past two years will also being taken into account in the process," she added.
Nur Iffah Natasha Sofea also educated the athletes on the different type of sports championships or games that the athletes can compete in. She highlighted that there are two types of sports events; the first is the "contingent sports" event, while the other one is the "invitational sports" event.
The first one is a sports event that require the endorsement from the National Valuation and Selection Committee.
Sports events such as Olympic Games, Youth Olympic Games, Asian Games, Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, Asian Beach Games, Commonwealth Games, Islamic Games Federation and Southeast Asian Games are classified under the "contingent sports".
Meanwhile, the "invitational sports" event does not require endorsement by the National Valuation and Selection Committee and the selection and participation will be determined and decided by the respective national sports association. "Sports events such as 8th Pan Pacific Petanque Championship in Philippines is categorised under the "invitational sports" event and the selection will be decided by the association," continued Nur Iffah Natasha Sofea.
"And with this, I hope that all the athletes will at least have a basic knowledge and clear understanding of the roles and functions of the National Valuation and Selection Committee," she added. The national petanque last week won silver at the 8th Pan Pacific Petanque Championship in the Philippines when Mohd Abdillah Tamin, Hj Mat Rasil Hj Ahmad and Hj Karim Hj Ahmad fell 11-6 to Vietnam in the championship decider.
The trio beat Japan in the first round before defeating Indonesia in the quarter-finals. They then took down Singapore in the semi-finals to book their place in last Sunday's final.
