SEREMBAN, The Malaysian Finswimming Association (MFSA) hope that more state associations will be established to enable the sport to be contested in future Malaysia Games (SUKMA). MFSA president S. Ravivarma said this is because the rules stipulated that for the sport to be contested in SUKMA, it would need the participation of at least seven states. Currently, only five state associations have been set up since finswimming began in 2021. The five states which have set up a finswimming association are Negeri Sembilan, Penang, Selangor, Melaka and Johor while Kuala Lumpur, Kedah and Pahang are in the process of registering their associations. "The state associations are also important for us to be recognised and to obtain government funding to hold various development programmes for this sport,' he told reporters after presenting medals to the winners of the 1stt Negeri Sembilan Age Group Finswimming Championships, which saw 65 participants battling it out in various age categories here today. Ravivarma sa id the championships, with the youngest category featuring children aged eight, aimed to unearth new talent at the grassroots level who have the potential to bring glory to the country in the future, adding that the next championships will be held in Melaka. He also said that 32 fin swimmers will represent Malaysia in the Finswimming World Cup in Phuket, Thailand in October. Source: BERNAMA News Agency