Tuesday, October 11, 2011

MUDS 2011: Double Second

The second series of MUDS 2011 was 'Double Second' for Ong Wei Xiang of Kakithon. He got second place behind Chan Jun Seng of UPNM. But for overall points standing Ong still at the top. After UPM leg, the race will be continue for another 2 weeks at UM. Here are the news I cited from www.duathlonseries.com.my

RACE REPORT : MUDS 2 @ Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM)
What a close race it turned out to be with Chan Jun Shen and Ong Wei Xiang pushing hard in the Men's University race in the beautiful race course of Universiti Putra Malaysia. The 3km run, 13km bike and final 3km run, though offering a hilly bike course, saw participants averaging similar times (some faster) than 2010. The slightly cloudy weather was welcomed by all the participants.

In the Men's University category - Chan Jun Shen came in just seconds before Ong Wei Xiang. Nevertheless Ong Wei Xiang still stand in 1st place in terms of points accumulated over the 2 races for the Powerbar University Duathlete of the Year title (that was won by Chan last year). The final leg of MUDS will definitely be important for the two lads as they battle for top spot and maximum points.
In the Women's University category, Nuryasikin Masri came in first once again with the time of 56 minutes and 42 seconds, about 3 minutes ahead of the rest of the pack.
In the Open category, David John Spence came in first in the Men's Open, while Chung Hsing Ling came in first in the Women's Open.


Tuesday, October 4, 2011

MUDS 2011: UTM athletes foil UPNM sweep

Ong Wei Xiang (centre),  winner of the Men's University category,  is congratulated by friends.
Ong Wei Xiang (centre), winner of the Men's University category, is congratulated by friends.






KUALA LUMPUR:
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) were the only university able to challenge the dominance of overall defending champions Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM) in the first leg of the Malakoff University Duathlon Series (MUDS) in Sungai Besi.

UTM took the first and second places in the men's university category last Saturday.

UTM's Ong Wei Xiang powered to first place in the men's university category of the multi sport event, which combines running and cycling, in 49:8s while teammate Gan Shih Chau was the runner-up, finishing less than a minute behind.


Third place went to UPNM's Chan Jun Shen who posted a time of 50:8s in the 3.5km bike, 11km run and 3.5km bike race.

"I wanted to test myself here and it is definitely a good result for me and the team here today.

"I hope this result will help us capture the overall title this year," said Ong, a final year civil engineering student at UTM.


"It won't be easy to beat them (UPNM) to the title but we will definitely give it our best shot over the next two legs," added Ong.

UPNM, however, had no difficulty wrapping up wins in the rest of the university categories, taking the top three spots in the women's individual, men's team relay and mixed relay.

The men's open title went to Shahrul Ambri Mohd Noor who finished in 58:47s while Muhammad Iskandar (1:01:39s) took second place. Third place went to disabled runner Mohd Sabki Arifin who finished in 1:03:48s.


"I had the confidence that I would be able to win, coming into the race but am a little disappointed with my time," said Shahrul Ambri.

"Being just after the Raya holidays, I have not been able to put in as much training as I would have liked but I will definitely be looking to do better in the next leg," added the 39-year-old.

The women's open title went to 29-year-old Nor Juliana Ali (1:07:36s), while second and third places went to Chung Hsing Ling (1:07:36s) and Junaida Emylia Rosly (1:16:28s) respectively.

Title sponsor Malakoff , which is supporting the event for the fifth year running, is offering a total of RM25,000 cash incentives this year to encourage the participation of university athletes.

The next leg of MUDS will be held at Universiti Putra Malaysia on Oct 1 and the final leg at Universiti Malaya on Oct 15.

RESULTS -- Men's university: 1 Ong Wei Xiang 49:08s (UTM), 2 Gan Shih Chau 50.03s (UTM), 3 Chan Jun Shen, (UPNM)).

Women's university: 1 Nurasyikin Masri 1:09:25s (UPNM), 2 Noor Fitrah Md Saad 1:15:41s (UPNM), 3 Zurul Afinaz Zamani 1:19:02 (UPNM).

Men's relay: 1 UPNM Team 1 35:00s,2 UPNM Team 2 48:00, 3 UPNM Team 4 48:22s.

Mixed relay: 1UPNM Team-3 53:34s, 2 UPNM Team-1 53:50s,3 UPNM Team-2 56:39s.

Men's open: 1 Shahrul Ambri Mohd Noor 58:47s, 2 Muhammad Iskandar 1:01:39s, 3 Mohd Sabki Arifin 1:03.48s.

Women's open: 1 Nor Juliana Ali 1:07:36s, 2 Chung Hsing Ling 1:07:44s, Junaida Emylia Rosly 1:16:28s.

2011/09/28
By Fadhli Ishak
fadhli@nstp.com.my
Original Article Here

MUDS 2011: UPNM’s duathlete Jun Shen fails to retain title

A great news from UPNM for the very first leg of 2011 Malakoff University Duathlon Series (MUDS). Congratulation to Ong & Gan for podium finish and also Wong for competed in MUDS. I always will be praying for you greatest performance for your each race.

Here is the article from The Star.

EVEN with home-ground advantage, Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia’s (UPNM) Chan Jun Shen failed in his bid to defend the men’s individual title of the Malakoff University Duathlon Series (MUDS) held during the weekend.

Chan, a final-year student, wanted to make it a memorable outing for his team which he has been representing for the last four series. However, he managed only a third placing.

The race was won by Ong Wei Xiang from UTM while compatriot Gan Shih Chau, came a close second.

“I am thrilled to win. I joined the Malakoff Duathlon Series this year to set new standards for myself and bring pride to my university,” said Ong, a final year civil engineering student.

“Hopefully this win will contribute to help UTM win the Top University trophy at the end of the series,’’ he added.

Go for it: Fellow particpants cheering on Sabki to the finishing line in the MUDS series.

However, UPNM erased the disappointment by making a clean sweep of the top four spots in the women’s individual.

Nurasyikin Masri emerged champion with Noor Fitrah Md Saad, Zurul Afinaz Zamani, Nor Asmidar Zulkipli, coming out second, third and fourth respectively. The only spoiler in the top five was Siti Nor Intan Nor Ali of UiTM.

In the men’s Open, Sharul Ambri Mohd Noor emerged tops while Nor Juliana Ali was victorious in the women’s Open category.

The first leg of the Malakoff University Duathlon tri-series (MUDS) 2011 kicked-off with 195 athletes competing for incentives worth a total of RM25,000.

The inaugural MUDS was held in 2003 with 321 participants. With increasing awareness and interest in duathlons, the race has gained popularity amongst the local athletes. It garnered a total of of 881 entries in 2009, the highest so far.

The 3km Run-13.8km Bike-3km Run race in UPNM was divided into four categories. They were the University Category (men’s and women’s), Open Category (men’s and women’s), Media Category (men’s and women’s) and the Team Relay Catego-ry (men’s and mixed).

In addition to placing medals for the top winners, Malakoff has also introduced the University Incentive which rewards cheque prizes of RM3,000 to universities with a contingent of 50 individual participants and five teams.

This year’s MUDS also witnessed the triumph of the mind over physical limitations when 30-year-old Mohd Sabki Arifin put in his best effort, despite losing an arm in an accident in 2000.

Not one to give up in the face of adversities, he received cheers and encouragement from the spectators as well as other participants.

“Although the initial years were very challenging, I was never afraid to fight back and prove that I can overcome any physical disability. Sporting events such as the Malakoff University Duathlon Series have helped me prove that.

“Today I feel all the long days of rigorous training have been worth it,” said the courageous administration officer who only begun training in duathlons after the accident.

Following the first-leg at UPNM, the event will continue at Universiti Putra Malaysia tomorrow and wrap up with a grand finale at Universiti Malaya on Oct 15.

Story and photos by CHARLES FERNANDEZ
metro@thestar.com.my
original article here