More Woes For Wan Nin As She Is Kneed Out Of Games

PETALING JAYA: Misfortune continues to dog top rhythmic gymnast Lee Wan Nin as she has been ruled out of the SEA Games.

Yesterday, the 16-year dislocated her knee cap during a training session and will be out of action for at least 10 days.

It is certainly a big blow for gymnastics as Wan Nin, who is making a comeback after a back injury picked up at the World Championships in Paris in September, had a chance to challenge for a gold medal in her first SEA Games.

With her withdrawal, Malaysia will not have any representative in the rhythmic gymnastics.

Wan Nin: Dislocated her knee cap during training.

Team manager Petrina Low said that Wan Nin would now concentrate on her preparation for the Test Series in London in January. The top five in London will get a ticket to represent the country at the Olympic Games next year.

”It is unfortunate that this has happened to Wan Nin. She certainly cannot compete in the Games in this condition. But it is all right as the Test Series is more important,” said Petrina.

”She has time to recover and get back into top shape to mount a creditable showing in the Test Series.

“We hope she will not be bugged by injuries again.”

Gymnast Wan Nin shines at world meet, good bet for gold at SEA Games

KUALA LUMPUR: Rhythmic gymnast Lee Wan Nin showed that she can dance her way to a gold medal at the SEA Games in Indonesia after achieving Malaysia’s best result in the World Championships in Mont­pel­lier, France, yesterday.

The 16-year-old Wan Nin finished 30th in a 130-gymnast field with a combined score of 76.000 points in the individual all-around qualifying event.

The top 24 gymnasts who made the all-around final are guaranteed of places in the London Olympics next year. Wan Nin, by virtue of being third in the reserve list, will get to go if three of the top-24 gymnasts pull out.

The good news, however, is that she did better than her closest rival from the South-East Asia region – Thailand’s Tharatip Sridee, who finished in 58th spot with 72.400 points.

Star in the making: Lee Wan Nin gave Malaysia their best ever finish in rhythmic gymnastics at the world meet in France.

Wan Nin was most impressive in two apparatus – hoop and clubs – and was rewarded with identical scores of 25.700. “I am disappointed with my ball routine as I know I could have performed better.

“This finally affected my ranking and I’ve lost my chance to feature in the Olympic Games,” said Wan Nin, who has vowed to train harder for the future competitions.

Malaysia’s Amy Kwan, however, was forced to pull out from the world meet due to a leg injury.

Amy, who won a gold medal in the hoop event at the Asia Pacific Alliance gymnastics championships in Melbourne in May, will have to make a quick recovery if she hopes to get back into shape for the SEA Games.

Malaysian Gymnastics Federation (MGF) secretary N. Shanmugarajah, who was pleased with Wan Nin’s breakthrough performance, expects more promising results from the youngster.

“She is still young but she still managed to overcome the jitters to finish 30th in her first world meet. This is the best result by our rhythmic gymnasts in a world meet series,” beamed Shanmugarajah.

Malaysia’s previous best performer was Elaine Koon, who finished 40th in the world meet in Moscow last year.

Elaine, who won a hoop gold medal at the last year’s Common­wealth Games in India, however, retired from the sport this year.

“Based on her progress in the sport, Wan Nin could have been a multiple medal winner at the SEA Games this year if only the host had not cut down on the number of events. Indonesia are only hosting the individual and team events in the rhythmic gymnastics in Palembang,” he said.

“We are not taking part in the team event because we are short of elite gymnasts. Wan Nin and Amy will take part in the individual all-around event. For now, Wan Nin certainly looks good to win the solitary medal for Malaysia in the rhythmic event.”

Shanmugarajah also credited Wan Nin and the other senior gymnasts’ improvement to the short training stint in St Petersburg, Russia, from Aug 9-30.

He said it also benefited the younger group.

Besides the two seniors, Malaysia had also sent a five-member junior team of Wong Poh Sam, Fatin Zakirah Jalany, Ooi Emma, S. Shasangari and Olivia Tai Qing Tong for exposure in Russia under the charge of national coach Elena Kholodova.

“The juniors returned home just before the world meet but they certainly gained valuable experience. This group of gymnasts are being groomed for the next Commonwealth Games in Scotland in 2014 and the Asian Games in South Korea in 2016,” said Shan­mugarajah.

Wan Nin To Keep Malaysian Flag Flying In Rhythmic Gymnastics

KUALA LUMPUR: Teen gymnast Lee Wan Nin is only in her first senior year but she is ready to replace former international Elaine Koon in keeping the Malaysian flag flying high in rhythmic gymnastics.

The pint-sized 16-year-old has been named for the November SEA Games in Jakarta and the target is to win a gold medal. The other member in the team is lanky Amy Kwan.

Wan Nin, of Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS), has also been identified as one of the gymnasts capable of winning a ticket to the Olympic Games through the World Championships, which will be held in Paris in October.

The spotlight is now firmly trained on Wan Nin and Amy following Elaine’s early retirement.

Elaine, the country’s first gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi last year, quit the sport due to some problems with her coach Elena Kholodova.

Many have failed to handle the pressure of sudden fame but not Wan Nin.

The bold and confident lass said that “challenges, be it big or small, are part and parcel of a gymnast’s life”.

“There were expectations when I was a junior and it is the same now that I am in the senior rank. I will just continue to work hard in training,” said Wan Nin.

“I represented Malaysia as a senior for the first time at the World Cup in Paris (in April). I finished 18th out of 51 competitors and it was a good experience for me. It showed me where I stood among the world class gymnasts.”

Wan Nin hopes that a training stint in St Petersburg, Russia, next month would help strengthen her preparation for the SEA Games and World Championships.

“I have been improving in every tournament but I know that I still have a lot to work to do if I want to do well in my debut at the SEA Games and World Championships. I hope to hone my skills during the training at St Petersburg,” she said.

“This time, only one gold medal in the individual all-around is contested in the rhythmic competition at SEA Games. Usually, there are six gold medals on offer.

“That’s why this year’s SEA Games could be tougher than the previous editions.”

Although she has a realistic chance of doing well in the SEA Games compared to the World Championships, Wan Nin is still ready to give a go at the world meet.

Only the top 15 in the world meet are assured of places at the London Olympic Games next year.

Wan Nin and Amy are bring groomed by Kholodova to strike gold medals at the next Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2014.