KUALA LUMPUR: Can Malaysia produce a world-class sprinter in the next five years? Maybe not in the class of former sprint great Usain Bolt, but the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) feels that having a sub-10 seconds 100 metres runner is possible.

MOHE today launched the Sub-10 Seconds 100m Run Project (B10) in a bid to place Malaysia on the world map of the men's blue riband event.

Its minister Datuk Seri Dr Noraini Ahmad said Project B10 was conceived with the realisation that Malaysian sprinters were lagging far behind on the international stage.

"Based on the (Malaysia's) best record of 10.18 seconds set by Khairul Hafiz Jantan at the 2016 Malaysia Games (SUKMA), Malaysia is still behind even at the Southeast Asian level whose record of 10.03s was set by Indonesian sensation Lalu Muhammad Zohri, who qualified for the 100m at the recent Tokyo Olympics.

"I believe we can produce national sprinters with extraordinary ability through the best guidance and supreme trust given by MOHE. If possible, we want to be the first country in Southeast Asia to break this barrier," she said when speaking at the launch of Project B10 which was held virtually today.

Noraini pointed out that Project B10 is very special in that Malaysia will focus on only one sports discipline, with the aim of turning the country into a Southeast Asian hub for producing sprint champions.

She said local experts are supportive of this ambitious project, which will involve former national sprint champions and national coaches. The Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) Sports Centre has been chosen to be the coordinator of the project, which is expected to kick off in February.

Among those roped in are former national sprint champions Nazmizan Muhammad, Azmi Ibrahim and Watson Nyambek, national athletics head coach Mohd Manshahar Abdul Jalil and sprint coach Mohd Poad Md Kassim.

Noraini thanked the Ministry of Youth and Sports, National Sports Council, National Sports Institute and Malaysian Athletics Federation for their support and is looking forward to the involvement of corporate bodies as sports partners of Project B10.

Meanwhile, both Watson and Mohd Manshahar believe that Malaysia can produce sub-10s sprinters if they are given the right guidance and training under a special initiative like Project B10.

Only 10 sprinters aged between 18 and 22 who are at least 1.78m tall will be listed for the project, and among the selection criteria are running 30m in under 4 sec, 60m under 6.5s, and the ability to do "standing vertical jump" of more than 55cm.

At the ceremony, students of institutions of higher learning with the potential to join Project B10 were announced. They are Jonathan Nyepa, who has a best of 10.28s; Badrul Hisyam Abdul Manap (10.29s), Muhammad Aqil Yasmin (10.39s), Muhammad Zulfikar Ismail (10.43s), Muhammad Aiedel Saadon (10.58s), Muhammad Solihin Jamali (10.62s) and Muhammad Nazrul Naim Azman (10.72s).

-- BERNAMA