MALAYSIAN ATHLETES TO FOLLOW THROUGH NEW DELHI MOMENTUM TO GUANGZHOU

SEPANG (Malaysia), Oct 15 (Bernama) -- Malaysian athletes who won medals at
the New Delhi Commonwealth Games, that ended Thursday, are expected to keep the
momentum going for the Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, next month.

Malaysian athletes who arrived from New Delhi with 12 gold medals, two more
than the targeted 10, expressed hope of maintaining their splendid performances
in Guangzhou.

World number one Lee Chong Wei who successfully defended his
Commonwealth Games gold medal in the men's singles badminton competition, said
he hoped to perform better in Guangzhou.

"Although competition is going to be very stiff in Guangzhou, my target is
to win the gold," he told reporters after arriving at the Kuala Lumpur
International Airport (KLIA) here Friday.

He said beating arch-rival Lin Dan of China in the Japan Open last month had
given him added confidence to set the gold medal target.

"Within the next five weeks, I am going to focus seriously on training and
try to avoid any injury," he said.

Chong Wei said he had almost recovered completely from the back injury that
he had suffered during the world championships.

"After the Asian Games, I might just participate in one or two tournaments
to focus my preparations for the 2012 London Olympics," he said.

Diver Pandelela Rinong who clinched the 10m platform gold was also
optimistic of winning a silver or bronze medal in Guangzhou.

"Winning a gold in the Asian Games will be a bigger challenge but I have set
a bronze medal target for the 10m platform and silver for the 10m platform
synchro," she said.

The Sarawakian diver who suffered a neck injury in New Delhi, said she was
on her way to recovery and hoped to be ready for the Asian Games.

Meanwhile, Youth and Sports Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the
incentives for the Commonwealth Games would be reviewed because the RM80,000
(US$1=RM3.08) awarded to gold medals winners was high compared with other
countries.

--BERNAMA