Shah Firdaus goes down fighting in last eight of sprint event

BIRMINGHAM: National track cyclist Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom's bid for a second medal, after clinching bronze in men's keirin yesterday, came to an abrupt halt in the sprint event at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games today.

Although he managed to give Australia's Matthew Richardson a strong challenge, Shah Firdaus eventually faded away to lose 1-2 in the quarter-finals at the Lee Valley VeloPark, London.

Richardson got off to a bright start to take the first race before Shah Firdaus gave the Malaysian camp a glimmer of hope by rocketing to victory in the second race to set up the decider.

However, Richardson then stepped up a gear to cross the finish line ahead of the Malaysian and book a spot in the semi-finals.

Shah Firdaus had earlier defeated Sam Dakin of New Zealand 1-0 in the 1/8 finals and also was the seventh fastest in the qualifying round with 9.846 seconds (s).

Earlier, national cyclists Muhammad Ridwan Sahrom (10.226s) and Muhammad Fadhil Mohd Zonis (10.310s) were eliminated in the qualifying rounds after finishing 20th and 22nd respectively.

Only the top 16 riders qualify for 1/8 finals.

However, it's not the end of the road for Muhammad Ridwan and Muhammad Fadhil as they have one last shot to prove their mettle in the men's 1000m time trial tomorrow.

-- BERNAMA