Some years have passed since its successful turn of hosting the 2016 SukMa Games, and Sarawak’s commitment to become Malaysia’s sport powerhouse remains steadfast.
While the 2016 national multi-sports event gave the confidence needed to achieve its vision, the State intends to go beyond the glory years of the early 90s when it became SukMa champion in 1990, 1992 and 1994.
For that, Sarawak is determined to produce internationally competitive athletes irrespective of age or disabilities in diverse types of sports through initiatives implemented by Sarawak Sports Corporation (SSC) and Sarawak State Sports Council (MSN Sarawak) under the Ministry of Youth and Sports Sarawak (MYSS).
Among others, these include establishing world-class training and infrastructure to develop sport talents, as well as utilising and promoting the latest in sport science and education to boost qualifications of coaches and sport administrators.
Providing Top-Class Sport Infrastructure
A major initiative of Sarawak’s sport development is the construction of sport infrastructure that meet international standards.
The State sees it a necessity not only to attract more global sporting events to be held in the State, but also to provide the proper environment for the training of local athletes who have the potential to enter the world stage.
One such infrastructure is the Sarawak Sport Village, which started construction at Petra Jaya Sports Complex in July 2020 and is expected to be completed by 2021, according to MYSS in a written response to RAKAN Sarawak.
A project under the 11th Malaysia Plan that cost RM24.9 million, it will be the centre for elite athletes to continue their training upon completing their secondary education and having exceeded the qualifying age of below 21 years old for SukMa Games.
The village is designed and built by benchmarking sports complexes at Bukit Jalil in Kuala Lumpur, Bandar Penawar in Johor, Kota Kinabalu in Sabah and Thailand, and will comprise a four-floor hostel, a multi-purpose hall, a meeting room that can cater up to 100 people and a canteen or cafeteria for 500 people.
MYSS hopes that the Sarawak Sport Village will “help Sarawak realise its vision of becoming a national sport centre by 2024.”
The ministry is also carrying out a number of physical Projek Rakyat projects across the State that cost about RM172.3 million, consisting of sport facilities, a sport complex and social infrastructure.
In particular, it is targeting every district to have its own mini stadium or at least a sport facility (e.g. a football field) to encourage more children and youths from rural areas to be actively engaged in sporting activities and even establish their path towards a sport career.
Meanwhile, SSC is looking to bid for funds under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) for 13 new projects focusing on setting up more world-class facilities and equipment.
They include a high performance sport centre (HPC); an F1 go-karting circuit; a velodrome; skeet & trap and pistol facilities at Sarawak Shooting Range; a sport museum; upgrading of Petra Jaya Sports Complex to a smart stadium concept, including an LED lighting system; upgrading of running track at all stadiums; artificial hockey field turf in Sibu and Miri; and the construction of Kapit Sports and Convention Centre.
In January 2020, SSC together with Rehab Concept opened a rehabilitation centre at Pandelela Rinong Aquatic Centre, Kuching to assist Sarawak athletes in their recovery from sport injuries. As of March 2021, it has helped 109 athletes from 23 sports.
Fitted out with equipment imported from the United States, the centre is operated by a team of experienced physiotherapists and sport therapists from Rehab Concept.
Investing in Sport Science and Education
Under the 12MP, Sarawak intends to establish its very own high performance centre (HPC) in Kuching, described by MYSS as “a high-impact project towards sport development in the State.”
Planned and designed based on centres in Germany, New Zealand, Singapore and the United States, the centre is expected to benefit Sarawak athletes who want to achieve sporting success beyond their home state.
“By offering an ecosystem that comprises world-class facilities and amenities, (the HPC) aims to enhance performance as well as mental and physical strength of Sarawak athletes to become champions at national and international levels,” says MYSS.
A HPC usually provides sport facilities and support services such as sport science laboratories, biomechanics, nutrition, athlete career and education, talent search and many others to be able to produce highly competitive elite athletes.
Many prestigious centres are members of the Association of Sport Performance Centres (ASPC), with the National Sports Institute of Malaysia in Bukit Jalil being one of them.
To build the foundation towards Sarawak’s HPC, SSC formed the High Performance Unit (HPU) in 2019, starting off its support services with strength and conditioning, sport psychology, sport nutrition and performance analysis, and then expanding to sport rehabilitation and sport research and innovation.
As HPU-HPC, it will be instrumental not only in promoting applications of sport science and sport management and administration across Sarawak, but also creating high quality coaches and sport administrators who would further advance the State’s sport development.
“In that respect, we had planned and doubling efforts including having sports education courses such as sports specific, sports science, leadership, sports administration and management courses with the aim to produce quality performance standards among local sports associations, clubs and other non-government organizations (NGOs).
“It is our main emphasis to promote the application of modern sports science and management that will result in having quality coaches, officials, managers and consultants apart from having the latest quality sports equipment and facilities in the various sports fields and games,” explains SSC chief executive officer and MSN Sarawak director Dr Ong Kong Swee.
Since 2021, SSC has been collaborating with Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in offering two masters programmes for Sarawakians to possess the knowledge and skills in sport science and physical education without the need to be at UPM main campus in Selangor.
Those joining either the Masters of Education in Sports Science or Masters of Education in Physical Education will have the opportunity to make use of SSC facilities in Kuching for their studies, ranging from research and innovation excellence, sport facilities and infrastructure excellence, and recognition and performance excellence.
Sarawakians who have completed these postgraduates programmes can play their part in developing sports in Sarawak, and ultimately taking the State a step closer towards becoming a sport powerhouse by 2024.
