KUALA LUMPUR: National weightlifter Aniq Kasdan has qualified for the Paris Olympics in the men's Under-61 kilogramme class.
Aniq secured his ticket after placing eighth overall at the Phuket leg of the IWF World Cup today. He successfully cleared 125kg in the snatch and 165kg in the clean and jerk for a 290kg total.
The result also saw him place eighth in the Olympic qualifying rankings for Asia. Only the top-10 qualify.
The Phuket meet was the last Olympic qualifying event for Asian weightlifters.
Malaysian Weightlifting Federation (MWF) president Datuk Ayub Rahmat said the national body will plan how to best prepare Aniq, 21, for the Paris Olympics.
"Aniq has now automatically qualified for Paris," said Ayub.
"MWF will further discuss with the Olympic Council of Malaysia, National Sports Council and the National Sports Institute to allow for Aniq to train abroad before competing at the Olympics in August.
"Let us pray that Malaysia is able to win a medal in weightlifting at the Olympics."
Ayub expressed his gratitude to the Road to Gold (RTG) programme secretariat chaired by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh and OCM president Tan Sri Norza Zakaria.
Aniq was added to the RTG programme in October.
