PETALING JAYA: Talk about mixed feelings. Olympic shooter Nur Suryani Mohd Taibi experienced a range of emotions at the Subang Shooting Range yesterday.
The 31-year-old, competing in the Selangor Shooting Championships, was a picture of annoyance, frustration and worry at the range.
Annoyed because she has been dropped from the national squad after she gave birth to a baby girl last September.
Frustrated because she has been training on her own since last December as her coach Natalia Zhukova has returned to Russia for holiday.
And worried because her four month-old daughter Dayana Wadyan is down with fever.
But Nur Suryani managed to stay calm and focused to win the bronze medal in the women’s individual 50m rifle three position event with a score of 666.0 in her first competition since the London Olympics last August.
She, however, could not hide her displeasure at the National Sports Council (NSC) for dropping her from the national squad.
“The NSC have stopped my training allowance since I gave birth to my daughter last September. Usually, a shooter is dropped from the national squad if he or she fails to perform well in competitions. But my case is different as I was in confinement for three months,” said Nur Suryani, who is the first Malaysian woman shooter to have featured in the Olympics.
“I’m annoyed with the NSC as they never considered that I am a married woman who needs to fend for her child.
“I went to the London Olympic despite being eight months pregnant because I love the sport.
“Yes, the NSC supported me then. But I was disappointed when they informed me that I will not receive any training allowance until I prove to them that I can still perform well in competitions.
“I really don’t know how long it’ll take for me to prove myself in competitions to regain my place in the national team as my coach is still in Russia.
“I’m not in the best form – mentally and physically – after giving birth. Anyway, I hope to perform better in my next competition in March.”
Meanwhile, Hasliza Hamed of Armed Forces accumulated 669.1 points to take the gold medal while another her team-mate Muslifah Zulkifli (666.1) bagged the silver.
Hasli Izwan Amir Hassan, who featured in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, accumulated 572 points to bag the gold medal in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol. It was, however, way off his personal best of 584.
– THE STAR
