KUALA LUMPUR, May 22 — “Believe in yourself and realise that if we can do it, so can you...”
The profound quote came from none other than national squash personality Datuk Nicol David and fellow sporting compatriot Mohd Azizulhasni Awang who was recently crowned the world keirin champion at the Track Cycling World Championships in Hong Kong.
Eager to absorb their advice were undergraduates from local universities who turned up for the Graduan Aspire 2017 career fair at KL Convention Centre yesterday.
The 33-year-old world-class squash player and 29-year-old Azizul both acknowledged they had one thing in common: They knew what they aspired to be from a very young age and had never looked back in their journey to becoming Malaysia’s star athletes.
The first Asian to be ranked world number one in squash, Nicol’s initial dream to be an engineer was quickly forgotten as she fell in love with the sport when she was barely eight.
“There were certainly challenges along the way. It required a lot of hard work and sacrifices to get to the top. I was away from my home for 10 years when I learned the ropes and brushed up my skills in Australia.
“I had to step out of my comfort zone, because when you’re in your comfort zone, sometimes you don’t see what needs to be done,” said Nicol to a group of wide-eyed college and university students.
Training with her coach in Amsterdam for four years, after her stint Down Under, was tough, as Nicol recalled how she had to train twice a day in three to four-hour sessions for six days a week.
“It doesn’t get boring because you’re passionate about it. Your body is aching when you are done for the day and even after waking up, but you have to persevere.
“It requires a lot of mental strength, because you can’t just train, then perform. You need to mentally prepare yourself,” she said.
Looking around at the students seated in front of her on beanbags, she added, “That’s how it is with studying too. You need to plan how much time you would need to prepare before your exam. You have to visualise it in your head, and tell yourself this is what can be done. It needs a lot of practice.”
Azizulhasni then chipped in, saying, “We’ve got to take everything one step at a time. We need to set a clear target, then work hard to achieve it.”
“Both Nicol and I have proved that, so why not all of you guys too?” said Azizul.
