KUALA LUMPUR: National track cyclist Azizulhasni Awang is all smiles after picking up two bronze medals in the Japan Track Cup (JTC) series which concluded in Shizuoka yesterday.
Azizulhasni ended the series with one bronze in the individual sprint discipline and one bronze from the keirin at the Izu Velodrome.
The series was split into the JTC One and JTC Two competitions.
The former world champion said he was pleased with the volume and quality of the racing in Japan. The competition is part of his preparations for the Paris Olympics set to run from July 26 to Aug 11.
"The main objective here was to gain high-level racing to assess my current performance levels and get some practice in race situations," said Azizulhasni on social media today.
"I raced 10 times in one day for JTC One and 11 times over two days in JTC Two. The breaks between races were very short and the quality of the races themselves were very high, like at the world championships.
"I was told that the Japanese riders were in very good form for this race as it served as their selection platform for the Paris Olympics.
"Overall, my coach (John Beasley) and I are very happy with my current performance and also my timings. We still have 86 days left until the Olympics and I believe there is still room for me to improve my performances."
Azizulhasni breezed to two golds (individual sprint and keirin) at the President's Cup which was held at the National Velodrome in Nilai last week.
The 36-year-old will be making his fifth Olympic appearance in Paris, more than any other Malaysian male athlete has achieved.
The Pocket Rocketman will be looking to win gold in Paris and complete his collection of Olympics medals.
He previously won bronze at Rio 2016 and silver at Tokyo 2020, all in the keirin.
