KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 — The date of the Standard Chartered KL Marathon to take place at Dataran Merdeka here in conjunction with National Sport Day (HSN) on October 10 has not affected participation, said Youth and Sports Minister Kahiry Jamaluddin.
He said the ministry and the organiser agreed to the change of date from October 4, which was the original date.
“Indeed, there was a misunderstanding over the date but the ministry and organiser (Dirigo Events) and Standard Chartered (Bank) had discussed the matter and agreed to hold it together with HSN.
“For me, the change in date will not affect participation for the marathon because the demand each year is high, so there is no issue,” he told reporters here today.
He said this after visiting the Kuala Lumpur City Grand Prix track in Jalan P. Ramlee and around the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC).
Since 2009, the Standard Chartered KL Marathon has offered prize money togtalling US$125,000 (RM445,387) and has attracted participations not only in Malaysia but also the rest of the world.
In the meantime, Khairy opined that state and club players called up for the Malaysian selection should respect national chief coach Dollah Salleh in facing English Premier League club, Liverpool Football Club. “This is more towards FAM management (Football Association of Malaysia). Maybe, some teams regard that the match against Liverpool is not essential. So, there is no more respect for the national team.
“Although, this match involves the national selection, they (players) need to know the organisation is from FAM and the caller is the national football coach,” he said.
The media, prior to this, reported that Selangor team manager, Amirudin Shari said several of the state players would probably not be allowed to join the national team in the meeting against Liverpool. Three of Selangor’s players, Afiq Azmi, Ahmad Hazwan Bakri and Robert Cornthwaite were listed in the national squad for the match against Liverpool on July 27, at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil. — Bernama
