SINGAPORE: The gold’s as good as in the bag for national sailor Nur Shazrin Mohd Latif.
But the 17-year-old wants to achieve her first SEA Games gold in dominant fashion.
The teenager can afford to lose the final race of her girls’ Laser Radial event at the Singapore National Sailing Centre today and still pick up the gold medal because she has built up an unassailable lead since Saturday.
The plucky teenager has collected 13 points to open up a four-point gap over second-placed Kanapan Pachatikapanya of Thailand on 17 points. Singapore’s Samantha Yom Jingyi is third with 18 points after eight series of races.
Although she is assured of the gold, Nur Shazrin is disappointed with herself for not having done better against opponents she had beaten in the Youth Sailing Championships at the same venue in March.
“I beat the other girls here last month ... I left them quite far during that race, but this time they’ve managed to close the gap on me. I should’ve done better,” she said.
“There’s only one race left and I want to win it.”
Nur Shazrin is glad that she’s able “to do just as my mother told me to”.
“My mother had told me that I had better win something in Singapore after the extensive training I’ve undergone this year ... so, I’m glad to have secured a medal here,” said the teenager, who is from Pasir Gudang.
“We had an intensive training camp in Lake Garda in Italy and also trained regularly at our centre in Langkawi. I think that’s why my mother wanted me to win here.”
Nur Shazrin is also happy that she’s the first from the Mohd Latif family to have won a SEA Games medal.
“My older sister Nurafiqah has quit the sport. My second sister, Nurliyana, is still with the team but both of them have yet to win a SEA Games medal. I’m so happy to become the first from the family to win a SEA Games medal.”
The Star Online
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