KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia may have surpassed their 200-medal target at the Thailand SEA Games, but sports science specialist Dr Ahmad Fadzlee Ahmad Idris believes the achievement reflects low expectations rather than genuine sporting progress.
Malaysia returned with 231 medals, including 57 gold, yet Ahmad Fadzlee said the “colourless” target was set too broadly and could be achieved without meaningful improvement in performance quality.
“We achieved the target, but it’s not the target that we want,” said Ahmad Fadzlee, a former head coach for the national rugby team, as a guest on Timesport: On the Beat podcast.
“The target is very, very wide. It is just a safe position, and it can be achieved because of the number of athletes we send.”
He added that medal totals alone were a poor indicator of progress, particularly in competitions with shallow participation.
“It’s only like nine or 10 countries, and some of the tournaments are not even participated by more than six,” he said.
“So we just set a target to be safe so that people like to hear that we achieved the target, but I think it’s not a very reasonable target.”
Ahmad Fadzlee noted that Malaysia’s gold medal tally trailed well behind hosts Thailand’s haul (233), a shift from previous SEA Games where Malaysia had often finished ahead.
While the overall medal count may satisfy short-term expectations, he warned that the approach risks widening the disconnect between SEA Games results and performances at higher-level competitions.
“SEA Games is just Southeast Asia,” he said. “So if how we want to compete in the Asian Games, in the Commonwealth Games and then even in the Olympics, this is something that I think is not appropriate.”
Ahmad Fadzlee added that Malaysia’s athlete development system has become overly focused on regional outcomes, while failing to cultivate the competitive mindset required at elite international level.
“We have full-time athletes and we have professional athletes, but currently we don’t put any supporting session that puts the athletes under real pressure.
“To be an athlete, you have to have pressure. If you don’t want pressure, then don’t become an athlete.”
He stressed that SEA Games success should serve as an evaluation point rather than a destination, calling for sports bodies to reassess their development pathways and competitive exposure.
“This should be a starting point for all the associations to go back to the drawing board.”
“If we are only comfortable achieving targets here (at the SEA Games, then how do we expect to go further?”
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