KUALA LUMPUR: There was all round celebration over the announcement by Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin that the 11 sports axed from the Malaysian Schools Sports Council (MSSM) calendar have been re-instated.

Muhyiddin, who is also deputy prime minister, said the ministry had allocated RM89 million for sports and co-curricular activities in schools which will also cover the 11 sports, namely bowling, squash, archery, table tennis, rugby, cricket, sailing, softball, handball, cross-country and chess.

While parents, teachers and students were elated with the decision, many now wonder if MSSM and the State Schools Sports Councils will quickly incorporate the sports into their calendars before the mid-term break, that is usually in the middle of the year.

“We need to quickly build an Under-15 team as the category was earlier scrapped by the KL Schools Sports Council,” said a KL-based hockey teacher.

“It’s great news but we hope that things will speed up. The students are going for a week-long break for the Chinese New Year and there will only be a week or so left before the month ends. Most schools will be organising their first-term examinations by then.”

“There are also the venues to consider.

The Under-15 categories must be played before the mid-term break as the students will have to prepare for the PMR examination that is usually held in October."

Another teacher hoped that the grant would also include their travelling expenditure.

“There aren’t many teachers who are passionate about sports. We do this for free when some of our counterparts prefer making money by giving tuition.

"If we can’t even claim for our travelling expenses, then we don’t see the need to go the extra mile as we will be incurring losses.”

Former MSSM Under-18 hockey player Ader Chan said: “I’m happy with the decision but plans need to be rolled out immediately so that the respective States and districts can start planning their activities and this will not intrude into the examination period.”

Parent Zainal Hashim, who initiated the Save Malaysian Schools’ Sports and Malaysian Sports Future Group on Facebook, added: "I am pleased with what I have read but we must now ensure that the 11 sports are reinstated into the MSSM programme. It is the ‘tidak-apa’ attitude of certain officials that led us all into such a predicament.”

Another observer, Ler Hui Yin, a former State gymnast currently pursuing her PhD in sports science, stressed that the concerned parties should find ways to enhance the participation of students in the 11 sports instead of cutting them off by saying they are "less popular".

“Let’s find a way to increase the students' interest in the (11) sports rather than cut them off!”

MSSM's annual grant was slashed from RM6.5 million to RM1.5 million for this year.

As a result, States decided against hosting the 11 events and the Under-15 category at zone and district levels.

Ironically, the ministry had set aside RM5.5 million for the Asean Schools Championships scheduled for July 12-21 in KL.