Foul!

The Borneo Post today reported that the Ministry of Youth and Sports in Sarawak and Sabah have agreed to set up the East Malaysia Sports Commission (EMSC). The proposal for the establishment of the commission, according to the report, is to facilitate the organisation of more sports programmes in the two states. The report raises several questions: 1. Will the East Malaysia Sports Commission be part of the Sports Commissioner's Office or will it stand on its own? 2. Were the Sports Commissioner's Office and Youth and Sports Ministry in Putrajaya consulted about the move? 3.  Will the EMSC be governed by the Sports Development Act? For the record, the Sports Commissioner's Office has an office in Kuching and Kota Kinabalu, as listed on its website . The Sports Development Act clearly states that those intending to organise local or international events must obtain approval from the Sports Commissioner's Office or face fines and/or jail time. News websi...

April 22, 2018 (11.23am): A press conference was held in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, announcing the fight between Manny Pacquiao and Lucas Matthysse will be held at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur on July 15.  The press conference was organised by MP (Manny Pacquiao) Production. I t is learnt Manila-based MP Production is still looking for a local organiser for the fight.  For the record, Section 36 of the Sports Development Act 1997 states: -- ORIGINAL POST Professional boxer Manny Pacquiao (pic) had on March 7 confirmed his next fight will be on June 24, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Filipino Senator believed his opponent would be World Boxing Association (WBA) (regular) welterweight champion Lucas Matthysse. Manny was quoted by the Manila Times saying:  "It's already final I'm going to fight in Malaysia on June 24.  It is against Matthysse. I'll be ready for the preparation and it's going to be 11 weeks." Sports Commissioner D...

UPDATE (Dec 11; 11.58am): Sporting events approved by Sports Commissioner's Office will be posted on the Youth and Sports Ministry's website starting Dec 14, as revealed by the Sports Commissioner in her statement today. I'm glad the last point of my observation (as per posting right below) has been addressed. --- UPDATE (10.57pm): A Twitter user had sent me a link by the organiser of the Klang Heritage Marathon 2017.  It states that the marathon has been "postponed to Oct 14, 2018" and that they have been victims of fake news and will lodge reports with the authorities against materials with elements of defamation or fake news. Read the full statement, posted on Dec 2,  here . --- ORIGINAL POST Screenshot of FMT's report. A Klang City International Marathon 2017  pacer suffered serious injuries after she and two others were hit by a car .  Turns out that the organiser of this morning's event, Earth Runners International Group Sdn ...

As published in Malay Mail today By Haresh Deol haresh@mmail.com.my Australia-based race series V8 Supercars has revealed the KL City Supercar Extravaganza “has been cancelled” as sources confirmed City Hall has not approved any street race in August. The championship was scheduled to be held in the Golden Triangle from August 12 to 14, mirroring the controversial KL City Grand Prix last year. Those behind the event, GT Global, were embroiled in a legal dispute with new promoters City Motorsports in March — fueling speculation the race would be called off. One of the GT Global shareholders had filed an application for a court injunction to stop City Motorsports from holding any street race in the city. The KL City 400 Supercar Extravaganza website, klcity400.com, has not provided any details regarding the race and its sponsors, except a countdown of the number of days before the supposed flag off. Insiders said the new promoters had only met City Hall once earlier this...

Having spent a day asking around and speaking to various folks - from writers, Youth and Sports Ministry insiders to observers, here are some of the names that could turn out to be the new Sports Commissioner (in no particular order) - as published on the backpage of The Malay Mail today. 1. Ab Jalil Abdullah, National Sports Council (NSC) sports management director    - it will be seen as a promotion for the S54 grade officer. Has the expertise but mainly on elite sports. Sports Commissioner's Office is also about mass sports. It would finally be the break he deserves as time (or rather age) is not on his side. 2. Madzrib Ibrahim, Registrar of Youth Societies    - an unknown among those outside the ministry but Madzrib was apparently "groomed for bigger things" only to be placed in cold storage as he does not click well with certain top officials. He once served as a deputy director general for the sports development division within the ministry and is curren...

It is often seen as as a perfect place for high ranking officials to 'retire'. The Sports Commissioner's Office was established on Jan 1, 1998 to act as the guardian for the Sports Development Act 1997. The first sports commissioner was Ahmad Bakri Shabdin, followed by Mahamad Zabri Min, former KL mayor Elyas Omar, Nik Mahmud Nik Yusof and the man who has just retired - Yassin Salleh ( pic ). Ahmad Bakri, Nik and Yassin served as the Youth and Sports Ministry's secretary-general prior playing sports commissioner. So who will best replace Yassin? Former Mailsport journo Rizal Hashim has his candidate as seen on his blog . If we follow precedent, then perhaps the current secretary-general Mohid Mohamed could fill the position. A candidate is expected to be named soon, as reported here . There have been many instances in the past where parties ignore the Sports Development Act and get away easily. Remember the controversial night race ? What about the ne...

UPDATE March 8, 2013 (9.36am) : Here is an email by FC Barcelona about the matter -   Dear Sir, Thanks a lot for your communication and for  your interest in our club with regards to our visit to Malaysia this summer. Briefly we will do the official announcement of the match and then we will take the opportunity to give all the details around this visit. We thanks again for your interest and we remain at your disposal for further enquires. Best Regards Chemi Terés International Communications Press and Communications Department --------- It is supposed to be the most anticipated visit. Spanish giants Barcelona are set to play in Malaysia on August 10 as published on the official website . Malaysia will be their final leg of the Asian Tour as the Catalans visit China on August 3 and Thailand four days later. Here's the twist. FA of Malaysia (FAM) were earlier clueless about Barcelona's visit to the country.  Yesterday, the national ...

It's been more than a month. But the Sports Commissioner's Office is still in the dark over the RM4 million channeled from the Malaysian Paralympics Council to Paralimpik Ventures Sdn Bhd. Sports Commissioner Yassin Salleh ( pic ) assured they are still keeping tabs on the matter. I really hope so. Otherwise, it would just go to show that anyone can get away with anything in Malaysian sports. HD says: RM4 million is a LOT of money.