AZIZULHASNI AWANGINTERVIEWBIGTHE

30 MAY 12, 2011 www.cyclingweekly.co.uk

Firstly, the big crash — what happened and when did you realise that you had a splinter

through your leg?AA: When the crash happened I felt really sore all down my left side but I still wanted to finish the race because I need to finish top four to maintain my World Cup leader’s jersey. As soon as I finished, I stopped at the fence and looked at my left leg. I couldn’t believe it when I saw such a big ‘toothpick’ in my calf!

What happened after you left the stadium? Is it true

you had to sleep the night with the splinter in? AA: I was in the medical room down in the velodrome for about half an hour before they took me to hospital. They gave me laughing gas in the ambulance so I didn’t feel much pain. I was laughing when I saw my coach’s face, and I asked him to pull the splinter out! At the hospital they weren’t confident of the exact position of the splinter in my leg so, yes, it stayed in all night.

Do you think your racing style — squeezing through

small gaps — is especially risky? AA: If you watch the keirin races of five years ago, that was real keirin racing. It was more interesting — everybody was swinging their bikes around the track. I will take any risk I need to win races. I’m prepared to take the hard option and go round the outside of my opponents, but if there is a small window between them, why not take it?

So you feel that the rule-makers and commissaires

have over-sanitised the event? AA: Keirin is no longer exciting to watch. All you can see is everyone staying in a straight line. It is hard to see a race with proper action in it. Us keirin racers are not trying to be superheroes or stuntmen, but racing is not really enjoyable in the form that it is in now.

It seems you have achieved better results in the keirin

than in the individual sprint. Do you see yourself as a specialist keirin rider or a more all-round sprinter? AA: After winning an individual sprint silver medal at the 2009 World Championships, I moved to focus more on the keirin [he took a silver in this discipline at the 2010 Worlds]. But from this year, we are

Azizulhasni AwangTHE MALAYSIAN kEIRIN specialist may have hit the headlines with his spectacular splinter incident at the Manchester World Cup, but that’s not the only reason he is well-known and popular with track fans around the world

EVEN before Azizulhasni Awang became a YouTube sensation with his spectacular crash and horrific injury at the 2011 Manchester World Cup, he had been a

hit with track fans for his diminutive size, unusual background and crafty racing

style. Although the splinter through the Malaysian’s leg ruled him out for the rest of the track season, he expects to be fully recovered for the next one and competing for medals at the London Olympics. CW talks to him about over-controlled keirin racing, his rural Malaysian upbringing and that injury.

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INTERVIEW | Azizulhasni Awang

starting to build my sprint form back up. I see myself as an all-round sprinter.

How are things shaping up for the London Olympics?

AA: I still need to improve a lot. Because of my small size, I need to work hard on my power output. I hope, with the specific training leading up to London, I will improve my power on the bike.

You now live in Melbourne but originally you come from

a rural region of Malaysia. What is your family background? What is your home region like? AA: I was born in a normal Malaysian family. My dad was a soldier when he was young and then became a mechanic while my

racing, which is really famous in Terengganu [riders compete on small fixed-gear machines without top tubes]. Then my brother and I joined the local mountain biking club. One day, our local coach took us to a track competition and the national development coach spotted us after we won a couple of races.

Malaysian cycling has produced some good track

cyclists, such as yourself, Josiah Ng and Rizal Tisin. What is the Malaysian cycling scene like?AA: The scene is still small compared to Europe and many countries, but it’s getting bigger now. When we produce world-class results everyone wants to start cycling. The problem is that we’ve only got two outdoor velodromes and neither is suitable for international competition. I hope the government will build some more to help develop more talent.

Has 15 years of the Tour of Langkawi helped raise the

profile of cycling in the country?AA: A lot of cyclists in Malaysia try to be roadies and are influenced by the Tour of Langkawi. That said, the national sports council and the Malaysian cycling federation do a lot of talent scouting for track cyclists too.

Should we expect to see some more talent coming

through the ranks soon? AA: There are a few young guys who did well at the 2011 Asian Cycling Championships in korat, Thailand [Muhamad Othman, 20, won bronze in the points race and Muhamed Yunos, 24, was one of the Malaysian team sprint trio that won bronze]. Now they’re going to join the rest of the Malaysian track team in Melbourne to train. I hope they can follow in our footsteps.

“Us keirin racers are not trying to be super-heroes or stuntmen”mum was a housewife. I am the eighth of nine siblings. All of my elder brothers were sporty and I did a lot of cycling with my seventh brother, although he’s focused on his job now. Terengganu, the region I was born in, is well known for its fishing villages.

How did you get from there to international

track cycling?AA: I started with drag bike

www.cyclingweekly.co.uk MAY 12, 2011 31

Awang is stretchered off the track after the splinter incident

Awang at the World Champs in 2009