Funding Not Finalised, Awaiting MNCF’s Plan – NSC

RAWANG, July 31 (Bernama) -- The National Sports Council (NSC) is still awaiting an official decision from the Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF) before finalising the amount of funding to be allocated for the national cycling team’s preparations for the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand.

NSC Director-General Jefri Ngadirin said the delay is due to MNCF’s scheduled Council Members’ Meeting this Saturday, where it will finalise its plans, list of cyclists, and funding requirements for the biennial games.

“MNCF has already made an initial selection of four cyclists each from TSG (Terengganu Cycling Team) and MPC (Malaysia Pro Cycling), and one from the national team.

“MNCF will make the final decision and confirm the list of cyclists. Only after that will discussions be held with NSC regarding preparations for the national team’s participation in the upcoming SEA Games in Thailand,” he told reporters after the closing ceremony of the 39th ASEAN Malaysian Women’s Amateur Open Championship at Templer Park Country Club here today.

Meanwhile, when asked about the amount of budget requested by MNCF from NSC for the 2025 SEA Games, Jefri stated that it would all be determined after the meeting.

“Most importantly, their planning must be clear, and only then can we translate it into funding. Without a plan, it’s difficult to make a decision,” he said.

Previously, TSG and MPC had stated that if the additional RM250,000 budget they requested was not approved, they would not release their cyclists to represent the country at the games.

However, the NSC had earlier announced that no additional budget would be provided to MNCF and only the remaining allocation of RM196,000 could be used – an amount deemed irrelevant given current costs.

-- BERNAMA