NAYPYITAW, Dec 20 ― National middle distance runner Mohd Jironi Riduan ended the 27th SEA Games campaign with a sweet memory when he lifted his second gold medal at the Theikdi Wunna Stadium here today.

He took the gold in 1,500m on the last day of athletics events after taking his first gold in 800m on Tuesday.

Hailed from Miri, Sarawak, Mohd Jironi, 25, shared the gold with Vietnam’s Van Thai Duong when both of them clocked 3:58:02s.

Indonesia’s Ridwan had to settle for the bronze when he trailed them in 3:58:37s while another national athlete M. Kesavan finished in the eight place in 4:05:90s.

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After his victory, Mohd Jironi dropped a bombshell that he would not be representing the country in the 2015 SEA Games in Singapore as he wanted to focus on his career as a teacher at Sekolah Sukan Tunku Mahkota Ismail (SSTMI), Johor.

“For me, this is the best ending to my competitive career in the SEA Games. I hope young athletes, who will succeed me, will be able to repeat my performance at the 2015 SEA Games,” he told reporters after receiving his medal.

Commenting on his victory in 1,500m, Mohd Jironi said he was surprised by the results as the Vietnamese runner crossed the finish line ahead of him based on the photo finish released by the organiser.

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“When the official result was released, we were declared joint winners. This is a jury verdict. I feel very happy as I had helped the overall Malaysia’s medal tally,” he said.

At the 2009 Laos SEA Games, Mohd Jironi bagged two bronzes in 800m and 1,500m while at the 2011 Indonesian SEA Games, he finished third in 800m but was disqualified for allegedly pushing another athlete.

At the 2007 Thailand SEA Games, he came back empty handed.     

Apart from Mohd Jironi’s victory, the national athletics squad collected three more silvers and two bronzes today.

The silvers were contributed by Adi Alifuddin Hussin in shot put, Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian (110m hurdles) and Muhammad Hakimi Ismail (triple jump).

The bronzes came from Raja Nursheena Raja Azhar in women’s 100m hurdles and men’s 4x400m quartet made up of Schzuan Ahmad Rosely, Mohamad Arif Zulhilmi Alet, P. Yuvaraaj and S. Kannanthasan.

Malaysian Athletic Union president Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad said he was satisfied with the national team’s achievement even though they failed to win the five gold medal target.

The national athletics squad ended their campaign with four golds through Mohd Jironi (800m and 1,500m), Nauraj Singh Randhawa (high jump) and Muhammad Irfan (discus throw). ― Bernama