By Karen Bong
KUCHNG, Aug 22: Sarawak’s women’s hammer throw athlete, Ailenna Thipong Laga, secured a bronze medal at the 21st Malaysia Games (SUKMA) 2024, despite not having professional coaching throughout her preparation.
In the finals held today at Sarawak Stadium, Ailenna achieved a throw of 42.04 metres, earning the bronze for Sarawak. The gold medal was claimed by Pahang’s Nurul Aiyani Mohamed Kamaluddin with a throw of 44.28 metres, while Perlis’ Nur Salsabila Mohd Zamsairol took silver with a throw of 44.10 metres.
Despite her success, the 21-year-old from Sarikei expressed disappointment at not securing the gold for her home State.
“While I’m happy to have maintained a throw over 40 metres, I’m disappointed I couldn’t break my personal best of 46 metres. I feel like I let Sarawak down,” Ailenna told reporters today.
This marked Ailenna’s second and final appearance at the Sukma Games. Her previous best achievement in the games was also a bronze medal at Sukma 2022 in Kuala Lumpur.
Currently a sports management student at Universiti Malaya (UM), Ailenna admitted to feeling nervous facing her competitors, particularly the gold and silver medalists, which she believed affected her performance.
“I think my mentality was my weakness today. After reflecting with my teammates, I realised that nerves played a part. I’m friends with the gold and silver medalists, so I was very aware of their strengths, and I think that impacted me,” she said.
Ailenna has always trained on her own and expressed deep gratitude to the Sarawak Sports Council (MSNS) for providing her the incentive to train in Bukit Jalil with her senior, Grace Wong, who played a significant role in her preparation for Sukma.
“I want to thank Grace Wong, who has consistently supported me and has become like a coach to me during this time,” she added.
Ailenna also acknowledged the contributions of her teacher in Sarikei, who assisted her in the final two weeks leading up to Sukma.
Looking ahead, Ailenna remains positive and hopes to achieve better performances in the future, with aspirations of qualifying for other events like the SEA Games. — DayakDaily
