Hockey officials spell out how they helped Kirandeep Kaur

 

Kirandeep Kaur said on Sept 8 she was having difficulties in furthering her studies and getting a scholarship despite excellent SPM results. (PKS Hoki Universiti Tenaga Nasional pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Hockey Confederation has denied claims by national hockey player Kirandeep Kaur that she faced difficulties in furthering her studies and getting a scholarship.

The MHC expressed dismay at Kirandeep’s tweet on Thursday, describing it as a serious matter considering that various efforts and assistance had already been given to the player.

The hockey body said efforts were made to place Kirandeep at a matriculation college and she was allowed to skip two tournaments so that she could focus on her studies.

The MHC board had also told her she would be given all possible assistance towards obtaining a place at university, Bernama reported.

In a statement, MHC said the confederation, the National Sports Council, national coach Nasihin Nubli Ibrahim and team manager Siti Amarina Ruhani had taken note of Kirandeep’s excellent results to help her with her academic progress.

Arrangements about her study plans were made soon after she got her results for the 2021 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination. She obtained 9As in the examination. She also scored a CGPA of 3.88 in her matriculation finals this year.

MHC also said they had been monitoring her progress since she was accepted into Gambang Matriculation College in May last year.

“Kirandeep continued getting her training allowance besides being given the flexibility and support in terms of training. This was done online and also at the Gambang matriculation centre throughout her stay there from May 2021 until May this year.

“This relaxation included Kirandeep’s decision not to be in the national team at the Women’s Asian Champions Trophy in South Korea last December and the Women’s Hockey Asian Cup in January as she wanted to focus on her matriculation studies,” the MHC said.

MHC said Kirandeep had applied to study at a public university and a copy of her application was forwarded to the MHC board on March 12 and April 28.

“The board assured her that all possible assistance will be provided. We have already discussed the matter with officials at the higher education ministry who gave positive feedback on the matter,” MHC said.

The statement said the National Sports Council, the youth and sports ministry and the ministry of higher education had a comprehensive system in place to ensure that all athletes are given the opportunity to excel in sports and studies. - FMT