2014: A rough year for Malaysia in sports

2014 was considered as quite a rough year for Malaysian sports, from failure of meeting targets in the Asian Games at Incheon, Korea and the Commonwealth Games at Glasgow, to the doping incident involving our top national athlete.

Nevertheless, amidst the disappointments there were also some proud moments including our para athletes' excellent achievements, squash queen Datuk Nicol David and not to mention our very own MMA fighters who seemed to have done remarkably well at the international area.

Here’s a recap of some of the ups and downs in the Malaysian sports scene for 2014.




Commonwealth Games

We were just one gold medal short of the targeted seven. At the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, the Malaysian contingent came back with six gold medals, seven silver and six bronze medals.

It was half the amount we obtained during the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Three of the gold medals were won by the badminton squad, while the rest were from weightlifting, squash and diving.



Asian Games

Again, the Malaysian contingent failed to meet its eight gold target - clinching only five gold, 14 silver and 14 bronze medals in this year's games at Incheon, South Korea.

In the previous Asian Games held in Guangzhou, China, the Malaysian contingent brought home nine gold medals.

But it wasn't a total disappointment as the country's karate team displayed a quite impressive performance, bagging two gold medals and two bronze.

Apart from that, Malaysia also bagged two gold medals through squash queen, Datuk Nicole David and another from sailing.


The Wushu doping incident

We would’ve have obtained six gold medals, but on September 30, Tai Cheau Xuen, who won gold in wushu at the Asian Games, was stripped off her medal because of a failed drugs test.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) announced that Tai had tested positive for sibutramine, a banned stimulant often found in weight-loss pills. That announcement reduced Malaysia's Asian Games gold medal tally from six to five.



Another doping incident

Just when you thought the nightmare was over, another one popped up. This time involving our badminton idol, Datuk Lee Chong Wei.

The world number one shuttler was reported to have failed a random doping test involving of a banned substance called dexamethosene at the Badminton World Championship in Copenhagen in August, where he was the runners-up in the men's singles event.

His Sample B test, conducted at the Oslo University Hospital in Norway, also turned out positive, thus rendering his current world number one title at stake.


The AFF Suzuki riot

Well, this one doesn't involve our athletes at all. On December 7, a scuffle broke down between Malaysian and Vietnamese football fans at the Shah Alam Stadium.

Local fans were said to have attacked Vietnam fans after Harimau Malaya lost 1-2 during the first leg of AFF Suzuki Cup semi-finals.

Malaysian authorities have taken stern action against the rioters where six of them have now been charged in court while a few others still remain at large. Police however, have identified the perpetrators.




Despite the disappointment and unpleasant incidents that have happened, we still have our happy moments.


Nicol David

Nicol, who won her first Women's Squash Association (WSA) world title in 2005, bagged it for the eighth time in Cairo after defeating Raneem El Welily from Egypt.

The world number one is also the first woman squash player to achieve that amount of world titles, apart from numerous other championship and games titles.



Asian Para Games

We didn't achieve the desired target during the 2014 Asian Games, but we sure did a great job during the 2014 Asian Para Games which was also held at Incheon, Korea from October 18 to 24.

The national heroes bagged 15 gold medal, 20 silver and 27 bronze medals, surpassing their nine gold target. They also surpassed their achievements in the previous games held in Guangzhou, China in 2010.

Sprinter Mohd Azlan Mat Lazin, made an impressive feat with three gold medals in the athletics event.


Mixed martial arts (MMA)

Although the sports is relatively new in Malaysia, Malaysian MMA athletes have done exceptionally well in the international arena recently.

In June, the Malaysian MMA Association (MASMMAA) sent a team to compete at the inaugural IMMAF World Championships in Las Vegas, Nevada where Malaysia became the first Southeast Asian country to take part in the event.

Back home, the Malaysian contingent did not disappoint when they won three fights against professional international opponents at home during the 'ONE FC: Roar Of Tigers', held in Kuala Lumpur on October 17.

The athletes also gained numerous victories outside Malaysia, including from the country's first female pro-MMA fighter, Ann Osman, who defeated former world boxing champion Ana Julaton in Dubai.

Ann was also named as TIME magazine’s new class of Next Generation Leaders.

The ASEAN University Games

This was another impressive feat by our athletes. The 2014 ASEAN University Games held in December this year in Palembang, Indonesia saw then national contingent bagging 40 gold medals, 42 silver and 49 bronze medals.

Not as much medals as the previous one in Laos, but the team managed to achieve its medal target.


AFF Suzuki Cup

Yup, we lost the championship, but the Harimau Malaya squad did not go down without giving the War Elephants a good fight.

Malaysia lost during the first leg of the final 0-2 in Bangkok, but won 3-2 at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium. However, Thailand came out on top with a 4-3 aggregate win.

Despite the defeat, Malaysian football fans have remained loyal to the national team. Based on feedback on social media, Malaysians say that the Harimau Malaya squad will always be in their hearts... forever.

So there you have it, the ups and downs of sports in 2014. Hope we'll have a more spectacular year in 2015.