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SEA Games: S'pore shooter Irwan gives himself ‘perfect’ birthday present

KUALA LUMPUR – It may have been his 18th birthday on Monday (Aug 21), but Singapore shooter Mohamad Irwan did not celebrate the occasion.

Singapore's Mohamad Irwan resorted to focusing on his breathing exercises, and on perfecting the process of his shot to block out the crowd. It worked as he ended up winning silver on his debut. Photo: Sport Singapore/Suki Singh

Singapore's Mohamad Irwan resorted to focusing on his breathing exercises, and on perfecting the process of his shot to block out the crowd. It worked as he ended up winning silver on his debut. Photo: Sport Singapore/Suki Singh

 

KUALA LUMPUR – It may have been his 18th birthday on Monday (Aug 21), but Singapore shooter Mohamad Irwan did not celebrate the occasion.

The Republic Polytechnic student was only focused on preparing for his South-East Asian (SEA) Games debut on Tuesday, where he was due to compete in the men’s 10m air rifle.

It turned out to be the right move for Irwan, as he gave himself the ‘perfect’ birthday present by winning silver in the event at the National Shooting Range in Subang on Tuesday afternoon.

The 18-year-old posted a score of 241.8 to finish second behind Indonesia’s Muhammad Naufal Mahardhika, who scored 245.4.

Thailand’s Napis Tortungpanich, who won silver at the 2015 Games, took home the bronze with a score of 222.2.

Singapore’s other representative in the event was Sng Jian Hui, who finished seventh with a score of 139.1.

But Irwan’s silver did not come easily, as he had to first endure a nerve-wrecking shootout tie-break with Tortungpanich.

The Singaporean however, ultimately came out on top as he shot 19.2 in the tie-break, while Tortungpanich could only manage a score of 18.6

Speaking to the media following his silver-medal win, Irwan said he felt relieved to have emerged from the finals with something to show for.

“There’s always immense pressure when you're in the final…I could feel the muscles in my face twitching during the event,” he recalled. 

“But I was in ‘the zone’ during the tie-break, and I didn't take note of where I was placed after making the shot.

“I was just focused on following what my coach and sports psychologist have been telling me to do – to trust my routine and be confident in myself, so that’s what I did and it helped me get through the tie-break.

“Nonetheless, it was a huge relief for me after the last shot. Being able to win the medal is the perfect birthday present for me, and just vindicates all the hard work that I've put into this sport.”

Irwan added that the “crazy” atmosphere in the range was something that he found tough to overcome.

“We're usually exposed to distractions during our training as that trains our concentration in the sport,” explained Irwan.

“However, the crowd atmosphere (today) was crazy, and it was definitely a distraction and made it harder for us to focus.

“So I did my usual breathing exercises, and just focused on perfecting the process of my shot rather than the outcome, and it worked.”

Irwan revealed that his next major goal will be to qualify for both the Commonwealth Games in Australia and the Asian Games in Indonesia next year.

“I knew I could put on a good performance here because I was peaking during my trainings, and I had expected a podium finish at the SEA Games at least,” said the former Singapore Sports School (SSP) student.

“Now however, after a break, I’ll be working towards the Commonwealth and Asian Games that are coming up next year.

“My ultimate goal in the sport is of course to qualify for the Olympic Games one day. So it’s crucial that I take part in all these competitions first as a stepping stone towards the Olympics.”

Irwan was not the only Singaporean shooter to win a SEA Games medal on Tuesday. Teh Xiu Hong and Nicole Tan finished with silver and bronze respectively in the women’s 25m pistol event earlier in the day.

Teh shot a score of 28, which was just three points behind reigning SEA Games champion Alia Sazana Azahari of Malaysia, who scored 31. Tan’s score of 23 saw her pip Thailand’s Kanyakorn Hirunphoem (20 points) to the final spot on the podium.

Despite their podium finishes, Tan said she and Teh were both ‘disappointed’ at having failed to take the gold medal.

The 27-year-old said: “We were both aiming for gold, so it was a disappointment not to be able to claim it.

"Nonetheless, as we had not performed to our best during the qualification round, we are still thankful for our results during the finals as we managed to push our way up to the podium.”

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SEA Games 2017

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