Bar None

International football is set to go on after a climatic Qatar World Cup, with what's billed as the "ASEAN World Cup" - the 14th edition of the recently rebranded AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup set to run tonight all through mid-January. With Malaysia kick-starting their campaign v Myanmar - the narrative heading into the tournament was disheartening to say the least. With it not being in the FIFA footballing calendar, national stalwarts either weren't allowed to link up with the squad or rejected call-ups due to personal reasons. This resulted in head-coach Kim Pang-gon choosing an exciting but left-field 23-man squad with the likes of naturalized/heritage players such as David Rowley, Lee Tuck, Sergio Aguero alongside fresh young local faces like KL City ace Haqimi Rosli raring to make their major tournament debut. How deep a run can KPG bring this team especially with the likes of Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia all traditional heavyweights? This episode, we preview the tournament & dissect the Malaysian selection.

Image Credit: FA Malaysia

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As we wind down the year, we pick out some of the biggest sporting stories to happen in 2022. We explore sports-washing in these modern times in conjunction with Qatar WC 2022, go into the nitty-gritty of what goes behind taking up the post of Youth & Sports minister & wrap up with a story on the iconic Stadium Shah Alam.

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This week, we head to the world of triathlons with engineer by day, triathlete by night Kuok Yuen Teh - who broke the national triathlon record in Italy with a record of 9 hours and 28 minutes, a record which was previously set in 2000s at 9 hours 50 minutes. The experienced 35-year-old is currently working towards becoming the first Malaysian man to go under 9 hours (sub9) in triathlons by the age of 39. He joins us on the program, as we talk about his experiences, goals & hopes for the long-distance running scene locally.

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Qatar is set to be the centre of the planet this weekend making history as the first middle-east country to host the World Cup. However, for over 12 years since FIFA awarded them, the state had to answer to reports of worker abuse, homophobia, sexism & racism which are well documented with exposés in the media. On the money side, Qatar has spent over $300 billion on the event, which is over fifty times more than what Germany allocated in 2006 - money that could've been better used to fix the internal issues in the country. Will these be still remembered after the first ball is kicked and have they successfully sports-washed their global image? Sports writer Bob Holmes joins us on the programme this week.

Photograph: Marko Đurica/Reuters

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With the general elections looming, post GE-15 will see the fourth Youth & Sports minister in a little over five years. Long-term policies and consistent plans are ideal, however not always the case where incoming ministers come with new ideas, often derailing the plans of their predecessors. This week on the programme, we explore the role of a Youth & Sports minister and the different nuances that come with the post - should the sports minister be an ex-athlete? Should youth and sport - though overlapping in certain aspects, be separate entities? Sports lawyer & member of the panel of experts at KBS, Richard Wee joins us this week.

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With amazing track records in junior racing, 20 year old Syarifuddin Azman or commonly known as Damok, was recently announced to be competing for a full season of Moto3 with the MT Helmets-MSI team next year. Last weekend - after a two year hiatus - he raced and claimed the 16th position as a wildcard rider in Moto3 race at the Petronas Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit, attracting almost 165,000 motorsport fans who brought life back to the SIC. He joins us on the programme this week as we go through his career & journey so far while exploring what lies ahead for him in the future.

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After budget allocation for sports was cut by almost 70% in 2022, the 2023 Budget promises more goodies in all sectors of the ecosystem with RM332million allocated to the industry. Notwithstanding the fact that the budget will be retabled/tweaked following the dissolution of parliament & the upcoming general elections - this week, we dive deeper into the allocation covering all facets of the industry - from the elites, grassroots, esports, parasports, as well as sports operators/associations. We also ask the age old question, will there be transparency with the trickling of funds?

Noraseela Khalid from MOA (Malaysian Olympians Association) & Haresh Deol from twentytwo13 joins us.

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Over the weekend, one of the deadliest stadium disasters happened in Malang, East Java when local rivals Arema FC lost to Persebaya Surabaya - the Arema's first home lost in this fixture for over 23 years. Fans stormed the pitch causing police & authorities to react firing teargas trapping fans and causing at least 125 fans their lives - including 32 young children - and hundreds more hurt in the aftermath. With Indonesian fans and police/security officials shifting the blame to each other in the days that followed, this week we dissect how and why this happened & how the Kanjurahan disaster would affect the landscape of Indonesian football.

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At the recently concluded 20th SUKMA (Malaysia) Games, one of the biggest controversies was on the news that three weightlifters (one from Perlis, two from Terengganu) tested positive for banned substances throwing the entire event into uncertainty. The Malaysian Weightlifting Federation (MWF) ultimately pulled out from conducting the event, leaving a group of weightlifting enthusiasts to run it.

One of the three sports - alongside sepak takraw and taekwondo - that were dropped from the list of core sports due to doping issues in 2017, this week on the programme, we explore why doping is still prevalent in sports with Datuk Dr Ramlan Aziz, the founding CEO of the National Sports Institute.

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After two years of inactivity, the World Dodgeball Championships returned with our men's national team capturing their third world title defeating Australia 10-5 in the final. Following their success in 2017, 2018 and as world #1 - the squad met all expectation as they were heavy favorites coming into the tournament in Edmonton. Joining us on the programe this week, is team captain Aaron Peck & coach Kent Lau as they recount their triumph in Canada.

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