A devout Muslim, Dean began fasting during daylight hours in observance of Ramadan which has made training a much more difficult task, but regardless he has been working hard ahead of next week’s tournament.
“I am looking forward to the championship next week and I have been training hard for the event and I feel ready to officiate at the event,” Dean says.
“I cannot train for longer hours as currently I am fasting but I am training early in the morning before 4am and then after that I begin my fast and haven’t been training during the day. In the evening I start training after breaking my fast which is after 6pm.
The school teacher will be required to pass the referees’ fitness test before being appointed to matches during the tournament, and says he is prepared and ready to fulfil all the expected requirements.
“I do not see my fasting as an obstacle in my path. For me I am ready to officiate and have met the requirements of running 1000m in four minutes. The fitness test is completely different from the 11-a-side football tests,” he says.
Dean is not the only person who will be fasting during the competition with several members of the Malaysian squad also expected to be observing Ramadan which concludes in the second week of August.
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