HANGZHOU: Malaysian speedster Azeem Fahmi was unaffected by Thai Soraoat Dapbang's false start at the Asian Games men's 100m final on Saturday at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Stadium.
Recalling the incident, Azeem who won bronze in the event, said he had a feeling that Soraoat was going to do something. True enough, he did, and the Sea Games champion was disqualified for a false start.
"Before the race, I tried to keep my mind empty and focused, because I knew it was going to be a fast race.
"I was also prepared for things like this to happen, because Soraoat didn't look comfortable even at the call room. He was just too quiet, and looked edgy. I had the feeling and I was right," said Azeem, who holds the national record time of 10.09.
The Perak-born Azeem clocked 10.11 for bronze, China's Xie Zhenye ran a blistering 9.97 for gold and Thailand's Puripol Boonson took silver on 10.02.
Azeem disclosed that the presence of Malaysian Athletics Federation technical director, Robert Ballard, helped him to better manage the situation.
"After my own false start at the Hanoi Sea Games last year, I was more cautious. Before the race, I got a few pointers from Ballard to react better, and thankfully it wasn't me who got a false start.
"Soraoat's incident did not affect me, and I manage to get a podium finish."
Azeem admitted that Puripol is now the fastest sprinter in Southeast Asia, but he hopes to dethrone the Thai ace in the near future.
Azeem's success in Hangzhou finally ended Malaysia's 41-year wait for a medal in athletics' blue riband event, after Rabuan Pit's gold medal run at the 1982 New Delhi Asiad.
